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Literary notes about Adapt (AI summary)

In literature, "adapt" often functions as a versatile term that captures the tension between a character’s internal nature and the external forces demanding change. It is used to portray how individuals are compelled to reshape their essence to survive or thrive—such as the way a character must modify their nature when faced with a chosen yet challenging element [1] or the inner adjustment required to meld with another’s influence [2]. The concept also extends to institutions and societies, where adaptation denotes the process of harmonizing established practices with emergent needs, as expressed in the commentary on judicial power and governance [3]. Across various contexts, authors use "adapt" to underscore that flexibility—whether of character, institution, or even perception—is essential to navigating life's shifting landscapes.
  1. Urged thus far, I had no choice but to adapt my nature to an element which I had willingly chosen.
    — from Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
  2. It remained for me to adapt myself to Dora; to share with her what I could, and be happy; to bear on my own shoulders what I must, and be happy still.
    — from David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
  3. It may easily be proved that the Union could not adapt the judicial power of the States to its wants.
    — from Democracy in America — Volume 1 by Alexis de Tocqueville

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