If you have the guts to be yourself, other people'll pay your price.
John UpdikeRead
The crooked little tomato branches, pulpy and pale as if made of cheap green paper, broke under the weight of so much fruit; there was something frantic in such fertility, a crying-out like that of children frantic to please.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the overwhelming abundance of nature and the emotional turmoil it can evoke.
In this vivid depiction, John Updike highlights the paradox of nature's fertility, illustrating how the sheer weight of abundance can lead to a sense of chaos and desperation. The imagery of the 'crooked little tomato branches' conveys both fragility and a compelling urgency, likening the plants' struggle to the desperate pleas of children aiming to succeed. This connection emphasizes the raw and sometimes frantic energy inherent in the process of growth and the pressures that accompany overwhelming success.
Themes
NatureAbundanceGrowthFertilityEmotions
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be included in a speech about the wonders of gardening and the beauty of nature's cycles.
More from John Updike
All quotes →Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of. _x000D_ _x000D_ Suspect each moment, for it is a thief, tiptoeing away with more than it brings.
John UpdikeRead
Museums and bookstores should feel, I think, like vacant lots - places where the demands on us are our own demands, where the spirit can find exercise in unsupervised play.
John UpdikeRead
But it is just two lovers, holding hands and in a hurry to reach their car, their locked hands a starfish leaping through the dark.
John UpdikeRead
The reader knows the writer better than he knows himself; but the writer's physical presence is light from a star that has moved on.
John UpdikeRead
To guarantee the individual maximum freedom within a social frame of minimal laws ensures - if not happiness - its hopeful pursuit.
John UpdikeRead
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