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
Upon the whole, therefore, she found what had been sometimes found before, that an event to which she had looked forward with impatient desire, did not, in taking place, bring all the satisfaction she had promised herself.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Anticipation can lead to disappointment when our expectations aren't met.
In this quote, Jane Austen reflects on the common experience of looking forward to an event with great eagerness, only to find that the reality of the event does not live up to the excitement we built in our minds. This illustrates the notion that our desires and expectations can often lead to feelings of dissatisfaction when the anticipated joy does not match the outcome.
Themes
ExpectationDisappointmentSatisfactionAnticipationReality
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech discussing the importance of managing expectations.
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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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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