Hangsaman

by Shirley Jackson

you must, if you are ever to be a good writer, understand your own motives.”

“Entertaining is difficult for her.”

“A fundamental hatred of people, I believe,”

There was a point in Natalie, only dimly realized by herself, and probably entirely a function of her age, where obedience ended and control began; after this point was reached and passed, Natalie became a solitary functioning individual, capable of ascertaining her own believable possibilities.

never rest until you have uncovered your essential self.

Somewhere, deep inside you, hidden by all sorts of fears and worries and petty little thoughts, is a clean pure being made of radiant colors.”

Anything which begins new and fresh will finally become old and silly.

“No one likes me.” “I hardly blame them,” he said briefly.

“I’ve told you this before,” her mother said, and her voice added, so many, many times, “I’ve said it before, Natalie, and you know I hate to keep dwelling on it—but you do know that the money sending you to college is really more than your father can afford. We have deprived ourselves of many things.”

As she had never been before, she was now alone, and grown-up, and powerful, and not at all afraid.