I gave him my heart, and he took and pinched it to death; and flung it back to me. People feel with their hearts, Ellen, and since he has destroyed mine, I have not power to feel for him.
Emily BronteRead
Are you acquainted with the mood of mind in which, if you were seated alone, and the cat licking its kitten on the rug before you, you would watch the operation so intently that puss's neglect of one ear would put you seriously out of temper?
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the intensity of human emotions and how even minor distractions can affect our mood.
Emily Bronte's quote reflects on the deep connection between observation and emotional response. It illustrates how one can become so immersed in a seemingly trivial moment—like a cat tending to its kitten—that any imperfections in the scene can lead to significant emotional reactions. This speaks to the fragile nature of our thoughts and feelings, suggesting that even the mundane can provoke a strong psychological response.
Themes
EmotionsObservationMoodMindfulnessIrritation
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the subtleties of emotional responses during meditation sessions.
More from Emily Bronte
All quotes →I ran to the children's room: their door was ajar, I saw they had never laid down, though it was past midnight; but they were calmer, and did not need me to console them. The little souls were comforting each other with better thoughts than I could have hit on: no parson in the world ever pictured heaven so beautifully as they did, in their innocent talk; and, while I sobbed, and listened. I could not help wishing we were all there safe together.
Emily BronteRead
Vain are the thousand creeds That move men's hearts, unutterably vain; Worthless as withered weeds, Or idlest froth amid the boundless main.
Emily BronteRead
Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.
Emily BronteRead
He had been content with daily labour and rough animal enjoyments, 'till Catherine crossed his path. Shame at her scorn, and hope of her approval, were his first prompts to higher pursuits; and, instead of guarding him from one and winning him to the other, his endeavors to raise himself had produced just the contrary result.
Emily BronteRead
And, even yet, I dare not let it languish, Dare not indulge in memory's rapturous pain; Once drinking deep of that divinest anguish, How could I seek the empty world again?
Emily BronteRead
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