He did not like the grown-ups who talked down to him, but the ones who went on talking in their usual way, leaving him to leap along in their wake, jumping at meanings, guessing, clutching at known words, and chuckling at complicated jokes as they suddenly dawned. He had the glee of the porpoise then, pouring and leaping through strange seas.
Interpretation
The quote expresses a preference for authentic communication and the joy of discovery in understanding complex language.
In this reflection by T. H. White, the narrator reveals a nostalgic appreciation for engaging conversations with adults that are rich in nuance and complexity. Rather than simplifying their speech, those who communicate authentically allow younger minds to explore and interpret meanings on their own, fostering a sense of joy and intellectual curiosity, akin to a porpoise joyfully navigating the ocean's depths. This highlights the importance of genuine connections and the beauty of learning through conversations that challenge our understanding.
In practice
In a classroom discussion about literature, this quote can highlight the value of deep conversations.
Kay was older and bigger than the Wart, so that he was bound to win in the end, but he was more nervous and imaginative. He could imagine the effect of each blow that was aimed at him, and this weakened his defense. Wart was only an infuriated hurricane.
There is a thing called knowledge of the world, which people do not have until they are middle-aged. It is something which cannot be taught to younger people, because it is not logical and does not obey laws which are constant. It has no rules. Only, in the long years which bring women to the middle of life, a sense of balance develops...when she is beginning to hate her used body, she suddenly finds that she can do it. She can go on living.
The destiny of man is to unite, not to divide.
...All endeavours which are directed to a purely worldly end...contain within themselves the germs of their own corruption.
There is one fairly good reason for fighting - and that is, if the other man starts it. You see, wars are a great wickedness, perhaps the greatest wickedness of a wicked species. They are so wicked that they must not be allowed. When you can be perfectly certain that the other man started them, then is the time when you might have a sort of duty to stop them.
Life is too bitter already, without territories and wars and noble feuds
Journalism is popular, but it is popular mainly as fiction. Life is one world, and life seen in the newspapers is another.
This whole thing about reality television to me is really indicative of America saying we're not satisfied just watching television, we want to star in our own TV shows. We want you to discover us and put us in your own TV show, and we want television to be about us, finally.
Feminism is just an idea. It's a philosophy. It's about the equality of women in all realms. It's not about man-hating. It's not about being humorless. We have to let go of these misconceptions that have plagued feminism for 40, 50 years.
I am jealous of everything whose beauty does not die.
Our stories may be singular, but our destination is shared.
Once we see an aspect of what we or someone else does as something that happens, we lose our grip on the idea that it has been done and that we can judge the doer and not just the happening.
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