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Literary notes about porcelain (AI summary)

In literature the term “porcelain” is sometimes employed not just to denote a material but to evoke a particular hue and delicate quality. For example, in one passage the fragility and pallor of a character are compared directly to porcelain, suggesting a refined, almost ethereal whiteness and vulnerability ([1]). In another instance, a character is described “like a porcelain Chinaman,” a simile that calls to mind the smooth, pristine, and slightly artificial quality traditionally attributed to fine porcelain ([2]). In these cases, porcelain is used as a color metaphor that conveys both beauty and a certain fragility, enriching the imagery with associations of delicacy and refined artistry.
  1. Oliver noticed how delicately pale and fragile she seemed—white as a gull, fragile as porcelain.
    — from In the Roar of the Sea by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould
  2. “Eh bien!” said Madame, nodding her head like a porcelain Chinaman, and with a very knowing glance.
    — from Six to Sixteen: A Story for Girls by Juliana Horatia Gatty Ewing

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