Literary notes about Wanting (AI summary)
The word "wanting" has been skillfully utilized by various authors to denote absence or deficiency as well as continuous desire. In some works it expresses a lack of quality or completeness, as when a character is described as "sadly wanting" in courage during battle ([1]) or when certain elements are noted as missing to complete a text’s meaning ([2], [3]). In contrast, it may also capture an emotional, almost obsessive longing—illustrated in passionate declarations of undying love ([4]) or in the introspective torment of a character whose needs remain unfulfilled ([5]). This dual use of "wanting" not only enriches the narrative with both formal precision and deep sentiment but also reinforces the timeless connection between absence and human desire ([6], [7], [8]).
- "Hector," said he, "you make a brave show, but in fight you are sadly wanting.
— from The Iliad by Homer - The passage is corrupt, and some words are wanting to complete the sense.
— from The Geography of Strabo, Volume 3 (of 3) by Strabo - And now nothing more was wanting to their happiness as long as they lived.
— from Household Tales by Brothers Grimm by Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm - "I shall do one thing in this life—one thing certain—that is, love you, and long for you, and keep wanting you till I die."
— from Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy - And he was unsatisfied, unfulfilled, he raged in torment, wanting, wanting.
— from The Rainbow by D. H. Lawrence - “On this supposition,” said Ralph, “he must regard her as a thorn on the stem of his rose; as an intercessor he must find her wanting in tact.”
— from The Portrait of a Lady — Volume 1 by Henry James - Equitable feasts were never wanting about my altar, nor the savour of burning fat, which is honour due to ourselves.
— from The Iliad by Homer - She never forgot that vision of a man wanting to do as he liked at the last.
— from Middlemarch by George Eliot
