Literary notes about gratuitous (AI summary)
In literature, the term “gratuitous” is often used to denote something that is unnecessary or excessive, whether it be an idea, action, or remark. It can underline surplus information or actions lacking proper justification, as when authors critique redundant assertions or superfluous visits that serve no essential purpose [1][2]. At times, its use sharpens the impact of an insult or criticism, emphasizing that a particular action—such as a careless remark or unwarranted hardship—is uncalled for [3][4]. Furthermore, the word is employed in philosophical and political contexts to question the value of unmerited claims or practices, highlighting how an extra or unearned element can detract from what is truly essential [5][6]. Overall, “gratuitous” serves as a versatile tool to call attention to excesses in rhetoric and behavior across a broad range of literary settings.
- My contentions might run the danger of appearing as gratuitous truisms if not thus justified.
— from Argonauts of the Western Pacific by Bronislaw Malinowski - A gratuitous, entirely superfluous visit of that sort was sure to make a man disagreeable and ridiculous.
— from The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot - He could negotiate the distance; but anything else was a gratuitous insult.
— from The Blazed Trail by Stewart Edward White - The time and the manner of his asking her appeared like a gratuitous insult to me; and I could have wept with pure vexation.
— from The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë - In 1831 $250,000 were spent in the State of New York for the maintenance of the poor, and at least $1,000,000 were devoted to gratuitous instruction.
— from Democracy in America — Volume 1 by Alexis de Tocqueville - Such a proof is necessary, moreover, because without it the principle might be liable to the imputation of being a mere gratuitous assertion.
— from The Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant
