Literary notes about unfounded (AI summary)
The word "unfounded" in literature often functions as a critical marker, used to dismiss suspicions or assumptions that lack solid evidence. In works like Juliette Drouet's Love-Letters to Victor Hugo [1] and Dostoyevsky’s The Idiot [2], "unfounded" accompanies emotions of deep distrust or the negation of dubious suspicions, suggesting that certain convictions are baseless. Rousseau’s Emile [3] and Shelley's The Last Man [4] further exemplify its use in portraying personal grievances and accusations as void of merit, while Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi [5] and Doyle’s The Sign of the Four [6] employ the term to question assumptions in a broader social and moral context. In other literary instances—whether in the gossip-laden atmosphere of Wharton’s The Age of Innocence [7, 8], the dismissive tone in Austen’s Persuasion [9], or even historical narratives such as Suetonius’s Lives of the Twelve Caesars [10]—the designation "unfounded" consistently signals that an assertion or rumor has been debunked or fails to hold up under scrutiny. Authors like Braddon [11, 12], Northup [13], and even Marco Polo [14] use the term to call into question the reliability of certain opinions, urging readers to seek evidence rather than accept claims at face value.