Literary notes about begrudgingly (AI summary)
The adverb "begrudgingly" often appears in literature to underscore a character’s reluctance or implicit resentment when fulfilling an obligation or complying with a demand. It suggests that an action is carried out not out of enthusiasm but rather under duress or with internal conflict. For instance, its use can evoke a sense of moral or emotional constraint, as when a character is led into an uninviting situation with palpable resistance [1] or when a personal sacrifice is made against one’s natural inclinations [2]. In other narratives, it helps highlight hesitant compliance, whether during a physical journey through rugged terrain [3] or in a begrudging act of affirmation within dialogue [4, 5]. Overall, the word enriches the text by revealing the underlying ambivalence of characters who act not out of willingness but from necessity or external pressure.
- Chained again, and guarded like a murderer, Jason was begrudgingly led into the dark interior, the contents of which was depressingly anticlimactic.
— from The Ethical Engineer by Harry Harrison - He sacrificed himself to the family interests, but he sacrificed himself begrudgingly.
— from The Voice of the People by Ellen Anderson Gholson Glasgow - The hills carried them begrudgingly to a valley.
— from Dick Kent with the Malemute Mail by M. M. (Milo Milton) Oblinger - "Oh, the Packards are men," said Terry begrudgingly, "even if they are pirates!" This to her father and, it is to be suspected, for her father's sake.
— from Man to Man by Jackson Gregory - Besides, she admitted to herself, begrudgingly, that she had never known a man dance as this man danced, and the magic of the waltz was on her.
— from Six Feet Four by Jackson Gregory