Question

Using our prior knowledge and context clues, what do you think preserved means in this passage from "American Gothic"?

“...and a smokehouse/where a ham in hickory/is also being preserved”
to make lasting
quiet or sedate in demeanor
halted or stopped
a reference to something else that the reader is assumed to be familiar with

Answer 1

to make lasting

The act of smoking a ham to preserve it means that they are trying to make the meat good for storage for a long time. So in this context 'preserved' refers to the attempt to make something lasting. Presumably, since it's a full smokehouse, the ham is just one thing of many that they are trying to preserve.