Literary notes about Extort (AI summary)
The word "extort" has been employed in literature to evoke a sense of forced extraction—whether of allegiance, rights, or even material wealth—imbued with both political and moral overtones. For example, in John Milton’s works ([1], [2]), the term conveys a steadfast refusal to allow even divine power to forcibly obtain tribute or submission, emphasizing the heroic nature of individual resistance. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley similarly uses it in "Frankenstein" ([3], [4], [5]) to underline the inviolable boundary that must not be breached by coercive methods, highlighting a profound personal assertion against torture and oppression. In contrast, accounts such as those by Bartolomé de las Casas ([6]) and the journals of Lewis and Clark ([7]) portray extortion in terms of economic exploitation and material demands, while literary and philosophical texts by Nietzsche ([8], [9]) and even political rhetoric as seen in works like Shaw’s "Pygmalion" ([10]) extend the concept to contexts of rights and power dynamics. This varied usage underscores the term’s evolution from describing literal physical coercion to embodying broader, abstract struggles against forces that attempt to claim what is not freely given.
- That Glory never shall his wrath or might Extort from me.
— from Paradise Lost by John Milton - That Glory never shall his wrath or might 110 Extort from me.
— from The Poetical Works of John Milton by John Milton - “I do refuse it,” I replied; “and no torture shall ever extort a consent from me.
— from Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley - “I do refuse it,” I replied; “and no torture shall ever extort a consent from me.
— from Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley - "I do refuse it," I replied; "and no torture shall ever extort a consent from me.
— from Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley - This Ruler, with his Complices found out new inventions to rack, torment, force and extort Gold from the Indians .
— from A Brief Account of the Destruction of the Indies by Bartolomé de las Casas - they discovered our anxity to purchase and in order to extort a great plrice declared that they prized it too much to dispose of it.
— from The Journals of Lewis and Clark, 1804-1806 by William Clark and Meriwether Lewis - One must be in an extremity; it is necessary to have to extort one's rights; otherwise one makes no use of dialectics.
— from The Will to Power: An Attempted Transvaluation of All Values. Book I and II by Nietzsche - One must require to extort one's right, otherwise one makes no use of it.
— from The Twilight of the Idols; or, How to Philosophize with the Hammer. The Antichrist by Nietzsche - This is a plant—a plot to extort money by threats.
— from Pygmalion by Bernard Shaw