Literary notes about fractious (AI summary)
Literary authors use "fractious" to evoke a sense of unruliness and sulky irritability, applying it to both people and animals in a variety of contexts. In some narratives, the term paints a picture of a misbehaving child or an unmanageable animal, as when a tone mimics that of a reproof directed toward a misbehaving youngster [1] or when horses and other creatures are described as unmanageable [2, 3]. In other works, "fractious" extends to characterize human temperaments and even political groupings, underscoring discord and obstinacy in relationships or coalitions [4, 5, 6]. Whether used to illustrate a fleeting mood of irritability or a persistent state of cantankerous behavior, the word enriches the narrative by encapsulating a mood that is both defiant and troublesome [7, 8].
- His tone was grave; indeed, too much like reproof to a fractious child to suit Beatrice's pride.
— from Beatrice Boville and Other Stories by Ouida - Then, mounting their motor-cycles, the three boys made good speed home, meeting with no more fractious horses and puncturing no more tires.
— from The Motor Boys; or, Chums Through Thick and Thin by Clarence Young - "I am afraid your horse is a little fractious," he suggested respectfully.
— from An Algonquin Maiden: A Romance of the Early Days of Upper Canada by G. Mercer (Graeme Mercer) Adam - Lisha's patience give out at last, for I was dreadful fractious, knowin' it was all my fault.
— from Work: A Story of Experience by Louisa May Alcott - Former Communists dominated the government until 1996, when they were swept from power by a fractious coalition of centrist parties.
— from The 2003 CIA World Factbook by United States. Central Intelligence Agency - The Republicans of Massachusetts will make no fractious or importunate demand upon the new President.
— from The Works of John Greenleaf Whittier, Volume VII, Complete The Conflict with Slavery, Politics and Reform, the Inner Life, and Criticism by John Greenleaf Whittier - They'd refused to take their morning nap for some reason or other, and had been fractious ever since.
— from The Real Adventure by Henry Kitchell Webster - Never having been ill before, the depression had been so new that it broke her completely down; convalescence made her fractious.
— from The Young Step-Mother; Or, A Chronicle of Mistakes by Charlotte M. (Charlotte Mary) Yonge
