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Literary notes about snap (AI summary)

The word "snap" serves as a versatile literary device that can depict both the literal breaking of objects and the metaphorical shattering of emotions or societal bonds. It is used to capture the sudden fracture of physical objects under stress—illustrated when bits and drills yield to heavy pressure ([1]), or when lashings break under the strain of a shifting canoe ([2]) and when branches fracture in the wind ([3]). Beyond the tangible, "snap" evokes moments of instantaneous decision or change, as seen when a purse is closed with a crisp motion ([4]) or when a character adamantly severs ties in the midst of social interactions ([5], [6]). In other instances, the term reflects a rapid alteration of emotional state; for example, it signifies a sudden shift deep within a soul on the verge of breakdown ([7]). Thus, "snap" encapsulates both abrupt physical action and an immediate, transformative human response, enriching the narrative with its layered, dynamic connotations ([8], [9]).
  1. (5) Bits and drills will snap under heavy pressure.
    — from Simple Sabotage Field Manual by United States. Office of Strategic Services
  2. Tokosikuna eases his helm; then, as he tries to bring the canoe up to the wind again, his lashings snap, and the canoe sinks.
    — from Argonauts of the Western Pacific by Bronislaw Malinowski
  3. More than once he could distinguish their footsteps, as they brushed the sassafras, causing the faded leaves to rustle, and the branches to snap.
    — from The Last of the Mohicans; A narrative of 1757 by James Fenimore Cooper
  4. "Ah," said Mrs. Peniston, shutting her lips with the snap of a purse closing against a beggar.
    — from The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
  5. Stephen sat down at his right and the priest at the other side of the table closed his copy of The Tablet with an angry snap and stood up.
    — from A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
  6. You say you have something you want to say to her, and then you snap into it.
    — from Right Ho, Jeeves by P. G. Wodehouse
  7. (Alyosha began to cry, he had been on the verge of tears for a long time, and now something seemed to snap in his soul.)
    — from The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
  8. With those words, and a final snap of his fingers, Mr. Stryver shouldered himself into Fleet-street, amidst the general approbation of his hearers.
    — from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
  9. 'You are a fool,' said Wegg, with a snap of his fingers, 'and I'd have got rid of you before now, if I could have struck out any way of doing it.
    — from Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens

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