“ Were I to fall in love, indeed, it would be a different thing! but I never have been in love; it is not my way, or my nature; and I do not think I ever shall. ”
Jane Austen, Emma (1815). copy citation
| Author | Jane Austen |
|---|---|
| Source | Emma |
| Topic | love temper |
| Date | 1815 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/158/158-h/158-h.htm |
Context
“I cannot really change for the better. If I were to marry, I must expect to repent it.»
«Dear me!—it is so odd to hear a woman talk so!» —
«I have none of the usual inducements of women to marry. Were I to fall in love, indeed, it would be a different thing! but I never have been in love; it is not my way, or my nature; and I do not think I ever shall. And, without love, I am sure I should be a fool to change such a situation as mine. Fortune I do not want; employment I do not want; consequence I do not want: I believe few married women are half as much mistress of their husband's house as I am of Hartfield; and never, never could I expect to be so truly beloved and important; so always first and always right in any man's eyes as I am in my father's.»” source
«Dear me!—it is so odd to hear a woman talk so!» —
«I have none of the usual inducements of women to marry. Were I to fall in love, indeed, it would be a different thing! but I never have been in love; it is not my way, or my nature; and I do not think I ever shall. And, without love, I am sure I should be a fool to change such a situation as mine. Fortune I do not want; employment I do not want; consequence I do not want: I believe few married women are half as much mistress of their husband's house as I am of Hartfield; and never, never could I expect to be so truly beloved and important; so always first and always right in any man's eyes as I am in my father's.»” source
Meaning and analysis
