The Princess and the Goblin Quotes

“Seeing is not believing - it is only seeing.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“We are all very anxious to be understood, and it is very hard not to be. But there is one thing much more necessary.'
What is that, grandmother?'
To understand other people.'
Yes, grandmother. I must be fair - for if I'm not fair to other people, I'm not worth being understood myself. I see.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“People must believe what they can, and those who believe more must not be hard upon those who believe less. I doubt if you would have believed it all yourself if you hadn't seen some of it.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“Here I should like to remark, for the sake of princes and princesses in general, that it is a low and contemptible thing to refuse to confess a fault, or even an error. If a true princess has done wrong, she is always uneasy until she has had an opportunity of throwing the wrongness away from her by saying: 'I did it; and I wish I had not; and I am sorry for having done it.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“It is when people do wrong things wilfully that they are the more likely to do them again.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“...it is so silly of people to fancy that old age means crookedness and witheredness and feebleness and sticks and spectacles and rheumatism and forgetfulness! It is so silly! Old age has nothing whatever to do with all that. The right old age means strength and beauty and mirth and courage and clear eyes and strong painless limbs.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“Her face was fair and pretty, with eyes like two bits of night sky, each with a star dissolved in the blue.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“It was foolish indeed - thus to run farther and farther from all who could help her, as if she had been seeking a fit spot for the goblin creature to eat her in at his leisure; but that is the way fear serves us: it always sides with the thing we are afraid of.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“That's all nonsense," said Curdie. "I don't know what you mean."
"Then if you don't know what I mean, what right have you to call it nonsense?”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“But in the meantime, you must be content, I say, to be misunderstood for a while. We are all very anxious to be understood, and it is very hard not to be. But there is one thing much more necessary."
"What is that, grandmother?"
"To understand other people.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“but that is the way fear serves us: it always sides with the thing we are afraid of.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“Seeing is not believing—it is only seeing.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“"Then what do you see?" asked Irene, who perceived at once that for her not to believe him was at least as bad as for him not to believe her.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“THERE was once a little princess who—"But, Mr. Author, why do you always write about princesses?" "Because every little girl is a princess." "You will make them vain if you tell them that." "Not if they understand what I mean." "Then what do you mean?" "What do you mean by a princess?" "The daughter of a king." "Very well, then every little girl is a princess, and there would be no need to say anything about it, except that she is always in danger of forgetting her rank, and behaving as if she had grown out of the mud. I have seen little princesses behave like the children of thieves and lying beggars, and that is why they need, to be told they are princesses.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“I should like to remark, for the sake of princes and princesses in general, that it is a low and contemptible thing to refuse to confess a fault, or even an error. If a true princess has done wrong, she is always uneasy until she has had an opportunity of throwing the wrongness away from her by saying: 'I did it; and I wish I had not; and I am sorry for having done it.' So you see there is some ground for supposing that Curdie was not a miner only, but a prince as well. Many such instances have been known in the world's history.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“People must believe what they can, and those who believe more must not be hard upon those who believe less. I doubt if you would have believed it all yourself if you hadn't seen some of it.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“We are all very anxious to be understood, and it is very hard not to be. But there is one thing much more necessary.' 'What is that, grandmother?' 'To understand other people.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“Then you're leaving the story unfinished, Mr. Author!"

"Not more unfinished then a story ought to be, I hope. If you ever knew a story finished, all I can say is, I never did. Somehow, stories won't finish. I think I know why, but I won't say that either, now.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“Not to be believed does not at all agree with princesses: for a real princess cannot tell a lie. So all the afternoon she did not speak a word. Only when the nurse spoke to her, she answered her, for a real princess is never rude—even when she does well to be offended.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“I lost myself, and if I hadn't found the beautiful lady, I should never have found myself.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“it is so silly of people to fancy that old age means crookedness and witheredness and feebleness and sticks and spectacles and rheumatism and forgetfulness! It is so silly! Old age has nothing whatever to do with all that. The right old age means strength and beauty and mirth and courage and clear eyes and strong painless limbs.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“What does it all mean, grandmother?' she sobbed, and burst into fresh tears. 'It means, my love, that I did not mean to show myself. Curdie is not yet able to believe some things. Seeing is not believing—it is only seeing. You remember I told you that if Lootie were to see me, she would rub her eyes, forget the half she saw, and call the other half nonsense.' 'Yes; but I should have thought Curdie—' 'You are right. Curdie is much farther on than Lootie, and you will see what will come of it. But in the meantime you must be content, I say, to be misunderstood for a while. We are all very anxious to be understood, and it is very hard not to be. But there is one thing much more necessary.' 'What is that, grandmother?' 'To understand other people.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“It is so silly of people to fancy that old age means crookedness and witheredness and feebleness and rheumatism and forgetfulness!

The right old age means strength and beauty and mirth and courage and clear eyes and strong painless limbs.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin

“Mrs. Peterson was such a nice good mother! All mothers are more or less, but Mrs. Peterson was nice and good all more and no less.”
― George MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin