Normal, in our house, is like a blanket too short for a bed--sometimes it covers you just fine, and other times it leaves you cold and shaking; and worst of all, you never know which of the two it's going to be.
Jodi PicoultRead
You can blame your ugliness for keeping people at bay, when in reality you're crippled by the thought of letting another person close enough to popentially scar you even more deeply. You can tell yourself that it's safer to love someone who will never really love you back, because you can't lose someone you never had.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the fear of intimacy and the self-deception we sometimes use to avoid vulnerability in love.
Jodi Picoult's quote highlights the complex interplay between self-image and the fear of emotional vulnerability. It suggests that individuals may blame their perceived shortcomings, such as physical appearance, for their struggles in forming close relationships, when in reality, it is a fear of being hurt that keeps them at a distance. By convincing themselves that unrequited love is a safer option, they avoid the pain that could come from genuine connection, showing how self-protection can hinder authentic relationships.
Themes
VulnerabilityRelationshipsFearSelf-DeceptionLove
In practice
Example use cases
During a talk on mental health, one might use this quote to discuss the challenges of intimacy.
More from Jodi Picoult
All quotes →Whether it was power they sought, or revenge, or love-well, those were all just different forms of hunger. The bigger the hole inside you, the more desperate you became to fill it.
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she told me she'd be a phoenix." The image of the mythical creature rising from the ashes glitters in my mind. "They don't really exist." "She said that depends on whether or not there's someone who can see them.
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for 100,000 (dollars), you [can] flatten a house with a wrecking ball. Imagine how much less it [takes] to destroy something than it [does] to build it in the first place.
Jodi PicoultRead
But if you seek forgiveness, doesn't that automatically mean you cannot be a monster? By definition, doesn't that desperation make you human again?
Jodi PicoultRead
when you [lose someone], it feels like the hole in your gum when a tooth falls out. You can chew, you can eat, you have plenty of other teeth, but your tongue keeps going back to that empty place, where all nerves are still a little raw
Jodi PicoultRead
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