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
There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
We can either generate our own light or help amplify the light of others.
In this quote, Edith Wharton highlights the importance of both self-initiative and the supportive roles we can play in our relationships with others. Being a 'candle' symbolizes the act of creating and sharing your own light or inspiration, while being a 'mirror' signifies the ability to reflect and elevate the light others provide, illustrating that both roles are vital in fostering positivity and influence in the world.
Themes
LightInspirationSupportReflectionPositivity
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about teamwork, one might say this quote to emphasize collaboration.
More from Edith Wharton
All quotes βThey 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.
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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 otherβs 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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