They are all alike you know. They hold their tongues for years and you think you're safe, but when the opportunity comes they remember everything.
Edith WhartonRead
Staunch & faithful little lovers that they are, they give back a hundred fold every sign of love one ever gives them — & it mitigates the pang of losing them to know how very happy a little affection has made them .
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the deep connection and reciprocal affection between lovers, highlighting the joy they bring to each other.
Edith Wharton's quote reflects on the profound bond between lovers, noting that even small gestures of love can lead to immense happiness for both parties. It captures the essence of how love is a two-way street, where affection given is generously returned, and recognizes that while the pain of separation can be intense, the joy brought by love offers comfort and solace.
Themes
LoveAffectionHappinessRelationshipLoss
In practice
Example use cases
During a wedding toast, to highlight the joy love can bring.
More from Edith Wharton
All quotes →They seemed to come suddenly upon happiness as if they had surprised a butterfly in the winter woods
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Set wide the window. Let me drink the day.
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And I wonder, among all the tangles of this mortal coil, which one contains tighter knots to undo, & consequently suggests more tugging, & pain, & diversified elements of misery, than the marriage tie.
Edith WhartonRead
As he paid the hansom and followed his wife's long train into the house he took refuge in the comforting platitude that the first six months were always the most difficult in marriage. 'After that I suppose we shall have pretty nearly finished rubbing off each other’s angles,' he reflected; but the worst of it was that May's pressure was already bearing on the very angles whose sharpness he most wanted to keep
Edith WhartonRead
There are two ways to spread happiness; either be the light who shines it or be the mirror who reflects it.
Edith WhartonRead
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