“ Self-loathing is not sorrow. Yet it is good, for it marks a step in the way home, and in the father's arms the prodigal forgets the self he abominates. Once with his father, he is to himself of no more account. ”
George MacDonald, Lilith (1895). copy citation
| Author | George MacDonald |
|---|---|
| Source | Lilith |
| Topic | sorrow father self |
| Date | 1895 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/1640/1640-h/1640-h.htm |
Context
“She ceased, and again came the horror in her hair, the sparkling and flowing alternate. I sent a beseeching look to Mara.
«Those, alas, are not the tears of repentance!» she said. «The true tears gather in the eyes. Those are far more bitter, and not so good. Self-loathing is not sorrow. Yet it is good, for it marks a step in the way home, and in the father's arms the prodigal forgets the self he abominates. Once with his father, he is to himself of no more account. It will be so with her.»
She went nearer and said, «Will you restore that which you have wrongfully taken?»
«I have taken nothing,» answered the princess, forcing out the words in spite of pain, «that I had not the right to take.” source
«Those, alas, are not the tears of repentance!» she said. «The true tears gather in the eyes. Those are far more bitter, and not so good. Self-loathing is not sorrow. Yet it is good, for it marks a step in the way home, and in the father's arms the prodigal forgets the self he abominates. Once with his father, he is to himself of no more account. It will be so with her.»
She went nearer and said, «Will you restore that which you have wrongfully taken?»
«I have taken nothing,» answered the princess, forcing out the words in spite of pain, «that I had not the right to take.” source
Meaning and analysis
