“ A more practical man than I would attempt to teach her to make herself useful; but is not the capacity of being amiable a useful think in life? Without being pretty, she charms ”
Anatole France, The Crime of Sylvestre Bonnard (1881). copy citation
| Author | Anatole France |
|---|---|
| Source | The Crime of Sylvestre Bonnard |
| Topic | charm life |
| Date | 1881 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2123/2123-h/2123-h.htm |
Context
“but she is so finely gifted that whenever I show her anything beautiful I am astounded to find that I had never really seen it before, and that it is she who makes me see it. I have found it impossible so far to make her follow some of my ideas, but I have often found pleasure in following the whimsical and delicate course of her own.
A more practical man than I would attempt to teach her to make herself useful; but is not the capacity of being amiable a useful think in life? Without being pretty, she charms; and the power to charm is perhaps, after all, worth quite as much as the ability to darn stockings. Furthermore, I am not immortal; and I doubt whether she will have become very old when my notary”
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