Literary notes about Manage (AI summary)
The term "manage" in literature is remarkably versatile, conveying a range of meanings from exerting control over tasks or people to successfully achieving difficult or subtle objectives. In some works, it implies taking charge or overseeing responsibilities, as when a character is assigned to handle a branch of business or personal affairs [1, 2]. In other contexts, it denotes the struggle or success in performing an action against odds—whether it’s stealthily entering a room or managing to complete a delicate negotiation without inciting suspicion [3, 4]. Occasionally, it even carries a tone of ironic detachment or resigned capability, suggesting that despite one’s best efforts, some outcomes remain just beyond grasp [5, 6]. This rich array of uses demonstrates how the word "manage" can simultaneously highlight competence, perseverance, and the complexities of human endeavor.
- If you'll accept the place, you shall manage the corn branch entirely, and receive a commission in addition to salary.”
— from The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy - “This is my house,” he said; “I manage my own affairs.
— from The Forsyte Saga, Volume I. by John Galsworthy - I went at five o’clock, and walked; fancying I might manage to creep into the house, and up to Linton’s room, unobserved.
— from Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë - In any case, I shall manage to make my peace with her.
— from Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen - Idle old man, That still would manage those authorities That he hath given away!
— from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare - But he could not manage, by all his arts, to escape silent condemnation in the thoughts of the common people.
— from The Danish History, Books I-IX by Grammaticus Saxo