The best prose is written by authors who see their universe with a poet’s eyes.
Vera BrittainRead
It never seems to occur to anybody that some women may not want to find husbands.
Interpretation
This quote highlights the autonomy of women in choosing whether or not to pursue marriage.
Vera Brittain's quote emphasizes the often-overlooked notion that not all women aspire to get married; some may prioritize their independence, personal goals, or careers over finding a husband. It challenges societal expectations that women should naturally seek marriage, advocating for a broader understanding of women's desires and choices.
In practice
In a discussion about women's rights at a seminar, one might quote this to illustrate the importance of recognizing individual choices.
The best prose is written by authors who see their universe with a poet’s eyes.
The pacifist's task today is to find a method of helping and healing which provides a revolutionary constructive substitute for war.
It is probably true to say that the largest scope for change still lies in men's attitude to women, and in women's attitude to themselves.
Modern war and modern civilisation are utterly incompatible...one or the other must go.
Separation anxiety is assuaged by constant connection. Young people announce every detail of their lives on services like Twitter not to show off, but to avoid the closed door at bedtime, the empty room, the screaming vacuum of an isolated mind.
Our society’s failure to recognize and care for the social and emotional well-being of our boys contributes to a nation of young men who navigate adversity and conflict with an incomplete emotional skill set. Whether boys and later men have chosen to resist or conform to this masculine norm, there is loneliness, anxiety, and pain.
I thought I would try to be gay for a while, but I'm just more sexually attracted to women. But I'm really glad that I found a few gay friends, because it totally saved me from becoming a monk or something.
Marriage is like a three-speed gearbox - affection, friendship, love. It is not advisable to crash your gears and go right through to love straightaway. You need to ease your way through. The basis of love is respect, and that needs to be learned from affection and friendship.
In general-like not just in fiction but in life-it doesn't work out well when someone imagines someone else as a manic pixie dream girl or an Edward Cullen or anything other than a full, complex human being. That said, while I've tried to reflect that in my books, I don't think I've always succeeded, because I am always running up against my own insufficiencies and biases etc.
Some of my relatives held on to imagined memories the way homeless people hold onto lottery tickets. Nostalgia was their crack cocaine, if you will, and my childhood was littered with the consequences of their addiction : unserviceable debts, squabbles over inheritances, the odd alcoholic or suicide.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.