Maggie, we're through with lies and liars in this house. Lock the door.
I have found it easier to identify with the characters who verge upon hysteria, who were frightened of life, who were desperate to reach out to another person. But these seemingly fragile people are the strong people really.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights that those who seem fragile and desperate for connection often possess true strength.
In this quote, Tennessee Williams reflects on the complexity of human emotions, particularly in individuals who may appear weak or hysterical. He suggests that these characters, often overwhelmed by their fears and desires for connection, embody a deeper resilience and strength, challenging traditional notions of what it means to be strong. This insight invites readers to empathize with those who struggle emotionally and to recognize the fortitude it takes to confront life's challenges and seek meaningful relationships.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a mental health awareness speech to highlight the strength of individuals who struggle with emotional challenges.
More from Tennessee Williams
All quotes →Time rushes towards us with its hospital tray of infinitely varied narcotics, even while it is preparing us for its inevitably fatal operation.
Show me a person who hasn´t known any sorrow and I´ll show you a superficial.
Success and failure are equally disastrous.
The rest of my days I'm going to spend on the sea. And when I die, I'm going to die on the sea. You know what I shall die of? I shall die of eating an unwashed grape. One day out on the ocean I will die — with my hand in the hand of some nice-looking ship's doctor, a very young one with a small blond moustache and a big silver watch.
Life is partly what we make it, and partly what it is made by the friends we choose.
Similar quotes
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And Hermione was struggling to her feet in the wreckage, and three red-headed men were grouped on the ground where the wall had blasted apart. Harry grabbed Hermione's hand as they staggered and stumbled over stone and wood. 'No - no - no!' someone was shouting. 'No! Fred! No!' And Percy was shaking his brother, and Ron was kneeling beside them, and Fred's eyes stared without seeing, the ghost of his last laugh still etched upon his face.
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My father always told me: 'Give somebody a hand and he'll take an arm.