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Literary notes about misrepresent (AI summary)

The term "misrepresent" in literature has been employed as a powerful critique of distortion and misunderstanding across a variety of contexts. For instance, Fyodor Dostoyevsky uses it to expose both personal misinterpretations and deliberate whitings of fact, as seen in his depiction of a character's fanciful misrepresentation of reality [1] and his insistence on factual clarity [2]. Similarly, writers like Griffis highlight the unintentional misrepresentation inherent in cross-cultural communication [3], while others, such as Rousseau's interpreters, use the term to warn against altering philosophical positions to suit one's own agenda [4]. In works by George Santayana and others, the term extends to broader socio-political misrepresentations, suggesting that governments may distort the genuine interests of their citizens [5], and even personal narratives can be manipulated, as Dickens illustrates with characters who both observe and misrepresent one another [6]. This varied usage underscores how "misrepresent" serves as a critical tool for questioning authenticity and integrity in both individual perceptions and institutional practices.
  1. But I was a thousand miles from supposing that she would misunderstand and misrepresent things in so fanciful a way....
    — from Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
  2. He did not confuse nor misrepresent the facts, nor soften them in his own interest, nor omit the smallest detail.
    — from Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
  3. 4 The foreigner may easily misrepresent, even when sincerely inclined to utter only the truth.
    — from The Religions of Japan, from the Dawn of History to the Era of Méiji by William Elliot Griffis
  4. This, however, is to misrepresent Rousseau's position.
    — from The Social Contract & Discourses by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
  5. But on account of their irrational basis all governments largely misrepresent the true interests of those who live under them.
    — from The Life of Reason: The Phases of Human Progress by George Santayana
  6. They watch you, misrepresent you, write letters about you (anonymous sometimes), and you are the torment and the occupation of their lives.
    — from Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

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