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‘Just toying with people’s emotions.’
‘A puppet-master.
“As flies to wan...
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https://medium.com/@msengupta26/as-flies-to-wanton-boys-are-we-to-the-gods-they-kill-us-for-their-sport-what-next-e37bde377d91
The phrase "As flies to wanton boys..." is a literary reference, and in this context, it's being used to describe someone who is controlling or cruel—like a puppet-master.
Here’s the full line being referenced:
"As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods; they kill us for their sport."
– William Shakespeare, King Lear (Act 4, Scene 1)
Meaning of the quote:
In King Lear, the character Gloucester is saying that human beings (like him) are as powerless as flies, and the gods are like cruel, careless children who destroy them for fun. "Wanton boys" means reckless or mischievous boys, and the comparison paints a picture of powerlessness and suffering at the hands of those with power who don’t care.
In your sentence:
‘A puppet-master. “As flies to wanton boys . . .”’ Cleo was an English teacher and it slipped out sometimes.
"A puppet-master" suggests someone pulling strings, controlling others, possibly in a manipulative or powerful way.
By quoting Shakespeare, Cleo is implying that people are being manipulated or hurt by someone powerful, just like flies being toyed with by cruel children.
It also adds a literary, slightly dramatic flavor to her comment—fitting for someone who’s an English teacher and prone to quoting classics.
Overall meaning:
Cleo is likening someone's manipulative or god-like behavior to Shakespeare’s idea that powerful figures treat others like playthings—cruelly and without care.
it slipped out so...
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slip out
(of a remark) be uttered inadvertently.
"the question slipped out before I'd considered the wisdom of it"
sentry
slouching
slouch
1. 동사 (게으르게) 구부정하니 서다[앉다/움직이다]
2. 명사 구부정한[축 늘어진 듯한] 자세
sulky 부루퉁한, 샐쭉한
got a shock.
"Getting a shock" can mean either experiencing a sudden, unpleasant surprise or feeling a painful sensation from electricity. In the first case, it's an emotional reaction to something unexpected and upsetting. In the second, it's a physical sensation caused by electrical current flowing through the body.
정전기가 일다
a cattle prod,
A cattle prod, also known as a stock prod or hot stick, is a handheld device, often electrified, used to guide or move cattle and other livestock. It can be used with gentle pressure or by delivering a short, controlled electric shock. The electric type delivers a relatively high-voltage, low-current shock.
electroc...
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not-quite-words:
the outdoor acoustics.
spoken at length to someone in the open air
Herne Hill.’
‘Kensington,’
Barons Court,’
Earl’s Court
form-filling part of the conversation,
heft
‘I’m a pharmacist,’
West Brompton,’
systems in place.’
stern
blood thinners?
혈액 희석제
take stock-keeping very seriously.’
emphati...
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scrutinised,
Clapham,
dropped off out of doors
"Drop off out of doors" means to leave someone or something outside a building, often for a specific reason like delivery or a pickup. It's a more formal way of saying "leave outside" or "drop off outside.
tickled
paying the price.
brusque 뚝뚝한, 퉁명스러운 (=abrupt, curt)
Enjoy yourself. Enjoy this real-world...
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action figure.
she’d consumed the shelves of the local library,
Blyton to Jansson, C. S. Lewis to P. G. Wodehouse, Christie then du Maurier then the Brontës,
reading indiscriminately but always ...
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Jane Austen and Sue Townsend, Ursula K. Le Guin and Jean M. Auel,
the maximum permitted,
Kafka and Woolf,
John Irving and Maeve Binchy,
Jilly Cooper and Edit...
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Private, intimate, a book was something she could pull around and over herself, like a quilt.
…을 끌고 다니다, …을 거칠게 다루다 pull around
Yes, she read a lot, but reading was a hobby, not a job,
what might have happened if she’d persisted,
‘We met at university’ was such a familiar phrase and perhaps that version of her life might have been fuller, more populated.
This sentence reflects a moment of introspection, imagining a different version of the character’s life.
Let’s break it down:
"‘We met at university’ was such a familiar phrase" – The speaker is reflecting on how common it is for people to meet partners or significant others at university. It’s almost a cliché.
"and perhaps that version of her life might have been fuller, more populated." – She’s imagining that if she had followed that familiar path—meeting someone at university—her life might have felt richer ("fuller") and less lonely ("more populated").
"Fuller" suggests more experiences, deeper relationships, maybe more joy or connection.
"More populated" hints at more people in her life—friends, partners, maybe even a family—compared to what she has now.
Overall meaning:
The speaker is wistfully thinking that if her life had followed a more conventional or socially typical path (like meeting someone at university), she might have ended up with a more socially rich, emotionally connected life. There’s a subtle sense of regret or longing in that reflection
unspooling
unspool
1.
동사 (실감개 따위에 감긴 것이) 풀어지다.
2.
동사 (영화가) 상영되다.
3.
동사 (영화)를 상영(개봉)하다
a small and sour grudge to carry.
as constant as the thermostat in the hall
