The secret was such an old one now, had so grown into me and become a part of myself, that I could not tear it away.
Interpretation
A secret becomes an intrinsic part of one's identity over time, making it difficult to separate from oneself.
In this quote, Charles Dickens reflects on the profound impact that secrets can have on an individual’s identity. He suggests that a secret, especially one held for a long time, can intertwine with one’s sense of self, becoming so ingrained that it feels impossible to remove or forget. This illustrates the deep connection between our inner lives and the hidden truths we keep, highlighting how such secrets can shape our thoughts, behaviors, and even our perception of reality.
In practice
In a conversation about the difficulties of embracing one's past, one might say, 'As Charles Dickens once wrote, the secret was such an old one now, had so grown into me...'
I recollected one story there was in the village, how that on a certain night in the year (it might be that very night for anything I knew), all the dead people came out of the ground and sat at the heads of their own graves till morning.
A silent look of affection and regard when all other eyes are turned coldly away-the consciousness that we possess the sympathy and affection of one being when all others have deserted us-is a hold, a stay, a comfort, in the deepest affliction, which no wealth could purchase, or power bestow.
Heaven knows we need never be ashamed of our tears, for they are rain upon the blinding dust of earth, overlying our hard hearts. I was better after I had cried, than before--more sorry, more aware of my own ingratitude, more gentle.
There are not a few among the disciples of charity who require, in their vocation, scarcely less excitement than the votaries of pleasure in theirs.
You might, from your appearance, be the wife of Lucifer,” said Miss Pross, in her breathing. “Nevertheless, you shall not get the better of me. I am an Englishwoman.
Christmas is a poor excuse every 25th of December to pick a man's pockets.
The law has no claim to human respect. It has no civilizing mission; its only purpose is to protect exploitation.
Grief allows you to let go of something you have lost only when you begin to accept what you now have in its place. As our mind clings to the familiar, to our established expectations, we can become trapped in feelings of disappointment, confusion, anger, that create our own internal worlds of suffering.
I can not imagine a God ... made happy by my getting down on my knees and calling him 'great'.
Night was a very different matter. It was dense, thicker than the very walls, and it was empty, so black, so immense that within it you could brush against appalling things and feel roaming and prowling around a strange, mysterious horror.
If we don't have access to facts, we can't trust each other. Without trust, there's no law. Without law, there's no democracy.
In every age 'the good old days' were a myth. No one ever thought they were good at the time. For every age has consisted of crises that seemed intolerable to the people who lived through them.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.