We took away your art because we thought it would reveal your souls. Or to put it more finely, we did it to prove you had souls at all.
Kazuo IshiguroRead
I do not think I responded immediately, for it took me a moment or two to fully digest these words of Miss Kenton. Moreover, as you might appreciate, their implications were such as to provoke a certain degree of sorrow within me. Indeed- why should I not admit it? - at that moment, my heart was breaking.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the deep emotional impact of hearing words that resonate with personal feelings and memories.
In this quote, the speaker reveals the powerful effect that specific words can have on one's emotions, particularly in the context of a significant relationship. The delay in response indicates a deep contemplation of the words spoken, which carry weighty implications, stirring up sorrow and a sense of loss. The admissions of heartbreak underscore the intensity of these feelings, highlighting how verbal expressions can evoke profound memories and feelings of longing.
Themes
HeartbreakSorrowRelationshipsMemoryEmotions
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about emotional vulnerability during a relationship seminar.
More from Kazuo Ishiguro
All quotes →You need to remember that. If you’re to have decent lives, you have to know who you are and what lies ahead of you, every one of you.
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I keep thinking about this river somewhere, with the water moving really fast. And these two people in the water, trying to hold onto each other, holding on as hard as they can, but in the end it's just too much. The current's too strong. They've got to let go, drift apart. That's how it is with us. It's a shame, Kath, because we've loved each other all our lives. But in the end, we can't stay together forever.
Kazuo IshiguroRead
What I'm not sure about, is if our lives have been so different from the lives of the people we save. We all complete. Maybe none of us really understand what we've lived through, or feel we've had enough time.
Kazuo IshiguroRead
If you were a boy and a girl and you were in love with each other, really, properly in love, and if you could show it, then the people who run Hailsham, they sorted it out for you. They sorted it out so you could have a few years together before you began your donations.
Kazuo IshiguroRead
We all live inside bodies that will deteriorate. But when you look at human beings, they're capable of very decent things: love, loyalty. When time is running out, they don't care about possessions or status. They want to put things right if they've done wrong.
Kazuo IshiguroRead
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