Literary notes about ingratiate (AI summary)
The word "ingratiate" has been employed in literature to describe various attempts by characters to win favor or acceptance, often highlighting the subtleties of social maneuvering. For instance, Dostoyevsky [1] uses it to depict a calculated effort to impress influential figures through intermediaries, while Joyce [2] frames it in the context of everyday interactions where manners are used as a tool for social mobility. Jefferson [3] and Brontë [4] similarly use the term to denote a deliberate, albeit sometimes suspect, effort to charm or curry favor with others. Stevenson [5] and Nietzsche [6] expand on this theme by addressing the persistence and even necessity of ingratiation in broader social relations, and Rizal [7] illustrates how this tactic may be strategically employed in cross-cultural scenarios. Collectively, these examples underscore the versatility of "ingratiate" as a literary device to explore themes of ambition, social etiquette, and the complexities of interpersonal relations.
- She’s been trying to ingratiate herself with Count K. through Nicolas.
— from The possessed : by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - He had opened a small shop on Glasnevin Road where, he flattered himself, his manners would ingratiate him with the housewives of the district.
— from Dubliners by James Joyce - When he awoke next morning, his first thought was to do his best to ingratiate himself with the maiden.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - Whether it was to ingratiate himself with my aunt I cannot tell, but, if so, he certainly should have behaved better.
— from The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë - Indeed, it was remarkable how well he bore these slights and with what unwearying politeness he kept on trying to ingratiate himself with all.
— from Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson - It is precisely because he is the exception that he must protect the rule and ingratiate all mediocre people.
— from The Will to Power: An Attempted Transvaluation of All Values. Book III and IV by Nietzsche - observed Ben-Zayb, to ingratiate himself with Simoun, who had spent a long time in North America.
— from The Reign of Greed by José Rizal
