I pay very little regard...to what any young person says on the subject of marriage. If they profess a disinclination for it, I only set it down that they have not yet seen the right person.
Jane AustenRead
Thus much indeed he was obliged to acknowledge - that he had been constant unconsciously, nay unintentionally; that he had meant to forget her, and believed it to be done. He had imagined himself indifferent, when he had only been angry; and he had been unjust to her merits, because he had been a sufferer from them.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the complexity of emotions in relationships, highlighting the struggle between intention and subconscious feelings.
In this quote, Jane Austen explores the conflict between one's conscious intentions and their deeper, often unacknowledged emotions. The character realizes that despite his efforts to forget someone, he has been influenced by feelings of anger and injustice towards her, revealing how our unconscious feelings can impact our perceptions and actions in relationships. It speaks to the difficulty of truly understanding our emotions and how they can contradict our conscious desires.
Themes
RelationshipsEmotionsIntentionLoveUnderstanding
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion on the complexities of love at a book club.
More from Jane Austen
All quotes →Nobody could catch cold by the sea; nobody wanted appetite by the sea; nobody wanted spirits; nobody wanted strength. Sea air was healing, softening, relaxing - fortifying and bracing - seemingly just as was wanted - sometimes one, sometimes the other. If the sea breeze failed, the seabath was the certain corrective; and where bathing disagreed, the sea air alone was evidently designed by nature for the cure.
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He certainly is very agreeable, and I give you leave to like him. You have liked many a stupider person.
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A person who is knowingly bent on bad behavior, gets upset when better behavior is expected of them.
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You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. Tell me not that I am too late, that such precious feelings are gone for ever.
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She hoped to be wise and reasonable in time; but alas! Alas! She must confess to herself that she was not wise yet.
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