Literary notes about Vulnerable (AI summary)
In literature, “vulnerable” is employed as a multifaceted term that conveys both physical susceptibility and emotional exposure. It is used to denote a specific point of weakness in combat or strategy—often the precise spot where an attack might cause the greatest harm, as seen when a character’s most sensitive area is targeted in battle ([1], [2], [3]) or when strategic positions are described as susceptible to sabotage or damage ([4], [5]). At the same time, the term frequently carries an emotional resonance, illuminating the delicate, exposed facets of human character or spirit—with authors evoking the raw sensitivity of an individual or the precarious nature of interpersonal relationships ([6], [7], [8], [9]). This dual application enriches narratives by intertwining the physical realities of conflict with the intangible, often tragic vulnerabilities inherent in the human condition.
- White Fang was in a rage, wickedly making his attack on the most vulnerable spot.
— from White Fang by Jack London - A full energy charge hit the tyrannosaurus in its most vulnerable spot.
— from The Revolt on Venus by Carey Rockwell - [Pg 263] and ferocious Achilles with but one vulnerable point, the end of his jaw.
— from The Courage of Marge O'Doone by James Oliver Curwood - Hospital electrical and electronic medical equipment is vulnerable to the effects of the EMP produced by nuclear weapons.
— from Health Service Support in a Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Environment Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures by United States. Department of the Army - Of these the first, while not the least important, was certainly the most vulnerable.
— from The Economic Consequences of the Peace by John Maynard Keynes - And there remained the open, exposed mouth, red and vulnerable.
— from The Rainbow by D. H. Lawrence - He is vulnerable to reason there—always a few grains of common-sense in an ounce of miserliness.
— from Middlemarch by George Eliot - " The touch of her hand, the moving softness of her look, thrilled a vulnerable fibre in Rosedale.
— from The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton - Her vulnerable little soul was flayed and trampled.
— from The Rainbow by D. H. Lawrence
