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.
The ladies here probably exchanged looks which meant, 'Men never know when things are dirty or not;' and the gentlemen perhaps thought each to himself, 'Women will have their little nonsense and needless cares.'
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the differing perspectives of men and women regarding cleanliness and trivial concerns in relationships.
In this quote, Jane Austen illustrates the contrasting viewpoints that men and women often hold in social situations. It suggests that men may be oblivious to certain social or cleanliness norms, while women are portrayed as being more sensitive to these issues and perhaps preoccupied with them. This highlights the comedic misunderstandings and gender dynamics prevalent in relationships, suggesting that each gender views the other's concerns as trivial.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about gender dynamics, this quote can illustrate how men and women may misunderstand each other.
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.
He certainly is very agreeable, and I give you leave to like him. You have liked many a stupider person.
A person who is knowingly bent on bad behavior, gets upset when better behavior is expected of them.
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.
She hoped to be wise and reasonable in time; but alas! Alas! She must confess to herself that she was not wise yet.
Similar quotes
Your marriage goes to a whole new level. You not only fall in love with your wife in a new way, but you're forced to pull together. You have to become a united front.
I feel wicked sleeping in a warm bed, while my dearest friends have been knocked down or have fallen into a gutter somewhere out in the cold night. I get frightened when I think of close friends who have now been delivered into the hands of the cruelest brutes that walk the earth. And all because they are Jews!
I had been alone more than I could have been had I gone by myself.
Sometimes a woman's love of being loved gets the better of her conscience, and though she is agonized at the thought of treating a man cruelly, she encourages him to love her while she doesn't love him at all. Then, when she sees him suffering, her remorse sets in, and she does what she can to repair the wrong.
Without the Sisters of St. Joseph, I might not be standing here.
Studies show that if people think that they are treated fairly by the police, that matters almost more than what the result is. If you get stopped for a traffic stop and feel that you are treated courteously and fairly, you are much more likely to accept the fact that you got a speeding ticket.