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Literary notes about stanch (AI summary)

The word "stanch" has been employed in literature with a fluidity that spans both literal and figurative meanings. In several instances, authors use it as an adjective to denote steadfast loyalty and firm resolve, as seen when characters are described as “stanch and true” ([1], [2]) or “stanch Swiss” ([3], [4], [5]), suggesting unwavering reliability and moral fortitude. Conversely, it also appears as a verb meaning to stop or stem something—most notably in contexts such as halting the flow of blood or effusion ([6], [7]). This dual usage highlights the word’s rich, evolving semantic range, with writers like Thomas Carlyle, Charles Dickens, and Homer all contributing to its varied literary legacy ([8], [9], [10], [11]).
  1. "He was stanch and true, was little Tonga.
    — from The Sign of the Four by Arthur Conan Doyle
  2. Ivy! Stanch and true!
    — from The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle
  3. O ye stanch Swiss, ye gallant gentlemen in black, for what a cause are ye to spend and be spent!
    — from The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle
  4. We have a thousand red Swiss; men stanch of heart, steadfast as the granite of their Alps.
    — from The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle
  5. and seem stanch.
    — from The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle
  6. Now seek some skilful hand, whose powerful art May stanch the effusion, and extract the dart.
    — from The Iliad by Homer
  7. Little Jimmie was striving to stanch the flow of blood from his cut lips.
    — from Maggie: A Girl of the Streets by Stephen Crane
  8. Think, ye stanch Swiss, whether it were good that grim murder began, and brothers blasted one another in pieces for a stone edifice?—Poor Swiss!
    — from The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle
  9. Such is the sleight of hand by which we juggle with ourselves, and change our very weaknesses into stanch and most magnanimous virtues!
    — from Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
  10. Deserters glided over; Royal-Allemand itself looked disconsolate, though stanch of purpose.
    — from The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle
  11. These now, in their stanch humour, will, for one thing, beset Procureur Sausse's house.
    — from The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle

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