One does not argue about The Wind in the Willows.
Interpretation
The quote suggests that certain stories, like 'The Wind in the Willows,' stand on their own merit and evoke strong feelings that are beyond argument.
A. A. Milne's quote highlights the intrinsic value of classic literature, specifically 'The Wind in the Willows.' It implies that the emotional and aesthetic experience offered by such works is profound and universally understood, making it futile to debate their significance or quality. Instead, readers are encouraged to embrace the feelings and memories these stories invoke.
In practice
In a book club discussion, one might reference Milne's quote when sharing their love for classic adaptations.
And how are you?" said Winnie-the-Pooh. Eeyore shook his head from side to side. "Not very how," he said. "I don't seem to have felt at all how for a long time." "Dear, dear," said Pooh, "I'm sorry about that. Let's have a look at you.
Piglet was so excited at the idea of being Useful that he forgot to be frightened any more, and when Rabbit went on to say that Kangas were only Fierce during the winter months, being at other times of an Affectionate Disposition, he could hardly sit still, he was so eager to begin being useful at once.
Time is swift, it races by; Opportunities are born and die... Still you wait and will not try - A bird with wings who dares not rise and fly.
Did I miss?" you asked. "You didn't exactly miss," said Pooh, "But you missed the balloon." "I'm so sorry," you said, and you fired again, and this time you hit the balloon and the air came slowly out, and Winnie-the-Pooh floated down to the ground.
Come, come, come. Without a monster or two it's not a quest, merely a gaggle of friends wandering about.
Friendship," said Christopher Robin, "is a very comforting thing to have.
Nobody knows that in reading we are re-living our temptations to be a poet. All readers who have a certain passion for reading, nurture and repress, through reading, the desire to become a writer.
Writers of feminist dystopian fiction are alert to the realities that grind down women's lives, that make the unthinkable suddenly thinkable.
All my stories are about the action of grace on a character who is not very willing to support it, but most people think of these stories as hard, hopeless and brutal.
Readers of fiction read, I think, for a deeper embrace of the world, of reality. And that's brave. I never get over being thankful for that - for the courage of my readers.
It's difficult to tell the truth about how a book begins. The truth, as far as it can be presented to other people, is either wholly banal or too intimate.
If I could sum it up in 50 words, I wouldn't have needed to write a whole novel about it.
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