I want to still be me when I wake up one fine morning and have breakfast at Tiffany´s.
But mostly they were lies I told; it wasn't my fault, I couldn't remember, because it was as though I'd been to one of those supernatural castles visited by characters in legends: once away, you do not remember, all that is left is the ghostly echo of haunting wonder.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the nature of memory and the distortions of reality that can arise from our experiences.
In this quote, Truman Capote explores the subjective nature of memory and how personal experiences can create a chasm between reality and imagination. The reference to supernatural castles suggests that our memories may be enchanting yet elusive; they leave behind only a vague sense of wonder rather than clear recollections. This highlights the idea that our memories can be unreliable, often shaped by our emotions and interpretations rather than factual accuracy.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a presentation about the reliability of eyewitness accounts, this quote can illustrate how memories can differ from objective truth.
More from Truman Capote
All quotes →All writing, all art, is an act of faith. If one tries to contribute to human understanding, how can that be called decadent? It's like saying a declaration of love is an act of decadence. Any work of art, provide it springs from a sincere motivation to further understanding between people, is an act of faith and therefore is an act of love.
No one will ever know what 'In Cold Blood' took out of me. It scraped me right down to the marrow of my bones. It nearly killed me. I think, in a way, it did kill me.
Hot weather opens the skull of a city, exposing its white brain, and its heart of nerves, which sizzle like the wires inside a lightbulb. And there exudes a sour extra-human smell that makes the very stone seem flesh-alive, webbed and pulsing.
I don't want to own anything until I find a place where me and things go together.
The quietness of his tone italicized the malice of his reply.
Similar quotes
How interesting it would be to write the story of the experiences in this life of a man who killed himself in his previous life; how he stumbles against the very demands which had offered themselves before, until he arrives at the realization that he must fulfill those demands. The deeds of the preceding life give direction to the present life.
There is nothing but water in the holy pools. I know, I have been swimming there. All the gods sculpted of wood or ivory can’t say a word. I know, I have been crying out to them. The Sacred Books of the East are nothing but words. I looked through their covers one day sideways. What Kabir talks of is only what he has lived through. If you have not lived through something, it is not true.
The story of my life is about back entrances, side doors, secret elevators and other ways of getting in and out of places so that people won't bother me.
I believe in standardizing automobiles, not human beings.
This freedom of movement is the very essence of our free society, setting us apart. Like the right of assembly and the right of association, it often makes all other rights meaningful-knowing, studying, arguing, exploring, conversing, observing and even thinking. Once the right to travel is curtailed, all other rights suffer, just as when curfew or home detention is placed on a person.
As flies to wanton boys, are we to the gods; they kill us for their sport.