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Literary notes about resent (AI summary)

In literature, "resent" is used to convey a spectrum of emotional responses—from mild hurt to explosive indignation. Authors often employ the term to illustrate a character’s unconscious reluctance to accept an insult or an unwanted imposition, as when unspoken grievances simmer beneath calm exteriors ([1], [2]). At other moments it signals a thoughtful, self-aware response to perceived overreach or injustice, reflecting an inner struggle to balance propriety and personal dignity ([3], [4]). The word also appears in broader contexts, capturing collective or institutional displeasure in the face of societal and political impositions ([5], [6]). Even when the reaction seems almost instinctive, as if a natural defense against criticism or unintended harm, "resent" retains its delicate tension between passive acceptance and active protest ([7], [8]). Overall, its varied use across different narratives enriches character development and deepens the exploration of personal and cultural conflicts.
  1. I did not resent it, I am a timid man; but here they have actually made me out mad.
    — from Short Stories by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
  2. Do you think , said Socrates, that if an ass happened to kick me, I should resent it ?
    — from The Essays of Arthur Schopenhauer: the Wisdom of Life by Arthur Schopenhauer
  3. They talked little, for Janet seemed faintly to resent Anne’s efforts to cheer her up.
    — from Anne of the Island by L. M. Montgomery
  4. “And pray what might you want with him ?” retorted my sister, quick to resent his being wanted at all.
    — from Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
  5. It is natural to resent, and to repel or retaliate, any harm done or attempted against ourselves, or against those with whom we sympathize.
    — from Utilitarianism by John Stuart Mill
  6. Then look at those who call themselves anarchists, who resent the imposition of power, in any form whatever, upon the individual.
    — from Nationalism by Rabindranath Tagore
  7. “You thought I would be afraid to resent this,” he said, with just a faint tinge of bitterness.
    — from Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad
  8. From the cab-driver down to—to Giotto, they turn us inside out, and I resent it.
    — from A Room with a View by E. M. Forster

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