Complete Works of Elizabeth von Arnim Quotes

“What Susie cannot grasp is that for Anna, to achieve her independence from living off Susie’s money through marrying a rich man, she is merely exchanging one form of enslavement for another and all within a social set that bores Anna to distraction.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“The princess hardly showed herself; Anna was English, besides being more or less of a lunatic — the combination, when you came to think of it, was alarming, — and they soon wearied of pouring into each other’s highly sceptical ears descriptions of the splendours of their prosperous days.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“The princess, however, most innocent of excellent women, had never spoken privately to Anna of Karlchen except once, when she inquired whether he were to have the best sheets on his bed, or the second best sheets; and Anna had replied, “The worst.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“The girl had shown herself possessed of such an abnormally large and warm heart at first, had been so eager in her offers of affection, so enthusiastic, so sympathetic, so — well, absurd; was it possible that there was no warmth and no affection left over from those vast stores for such a good-looking, agreeable man as Karlchen? But she set such thoughts aside as ridiculous. Her son’s simple doctrine from his fourteenth year on had been that all girls like all men. It had often been laid down by him in their talks together, and her own experience of girls had sufficiently proved its soundness. “The Penheim must have poisoned her mind against him,”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“I suppose you never wanted to be a woman,” she said, considering this phenomenon with apparent interest. Axel laughed. “The mere question makes you laugh,” she said, looking up quickly. “I never heard of a man who did want to. But lots of women would give anything to be men.” “And you are one of them?” “Yes.” He laughed again.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“Outward calm prevailed in the room, subdued voices, the tranquillity of fancy-work, and the peace of albums; yet Anna could not avoid a chilled impression, a feeling as though each person present were distrustful of the others, and more or less on the defensive.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“Surely it was strange that so young a woman should be living here quite unattached, quite independent apparently of all control, with a great deal of money at her disposal, and only one little girl to give her a countenance? Suppose she were not a proper person at all, suppose she were an outcast from society, a being on whom her own countrypeople turned their backs? This desire to share her fortune with respectable ladies could only be explained in two ways: either she had been moved thereto by an enthusiastic piety of which not a trace had as yet appeared, or she was an improper person anxious to rebuild her reputation with the aid and countenance of the ladies of good family she had entrapped into her house.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“This embroidery has cost at least two marks the meter,” she said to herself, fingering it. “She must roll in money. And the wall-paper — how unpractical! It is so light that every mark will be seen. The flies alone will ruin it in a month.” She shrugged her shoulders, and smiled; strange to say, the thought of Anna’s paper being spoiled pleased her.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“Regarding this quality, which she possessed, as more precious than others which she did not possess, she was not likely to sympathise much either with Anna’s plan for making people happy, or with those who were willing to be made happy in such a way. A sensible woman, she thought, will always find work, and need not look far for a home. She herself had been handicapped in the search by her unfortunate title, yet with patience even she had found a haven. Only the lazy and lackadaisical, the morally worthless, that is, would, she was convinced, accept such an offer as Anna’s. It was not, however, her business.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“Trudi was enjoying herself hugely. She saw Jungbluth’s waves slowly straightening themselves out of her hair, and for the first time in her life remained calm as she watched them go. She even began to have aspirations towards Uncle Joachim’s better life herself, and more than once entered into a serious consideration of the advantages that might result from getting rid at one stroke of Bill her husband, and Billy and Tommy her two sons, and from making a fresh start as one of Anna’s twelve.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“No, but one might mend — —” Anna stopped, feeling that under some circumstances even the mending of drains might be impious. She had heard so much about piety and Providence within the last two hours that she was confused, and was no longer clear as to the exact limit of conduct beyond which a flying in the face of Providence might be said to begin.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“Blood from your veins?” she repeated faintly. It sounded horrid. It offended her ears. It had nothing to do with the advertisement. The strange light in his eyes made her think of fanaticism, cruelty, and the Middle Ages. The mildest of men in general, as she found later on, rabidness seized him at the mere mention of Jews.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“every day spent here would be a day that made her better, that would bring her nearer to that heaven in which all good and simple souls dwelt while still on earth, the heaven of a serene and quiet mind. Always she had longed to be good, and to help and befriend those who had the same longing but in whom it had been partially crushed by want of opportunity and want of peace.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“Oh, it was beautiful to stand at that open window in the freshness, listening to the robin on the bare lilac bush a few yards away, to the quarrelling of the impudent sparrows on the path below, to the wind in the branches of the trees, to all the happy morning sounds of nature. A joyous feeling took possession of her heart, a sudden overpowering delight in what are called common things — mere earth, sky, sun, and wind. How lovely life was on such a morning, in such a clean, rain-washed, wind-scoured world.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“While he talked, however, he was criticising her, comparing the laziness of her attitude with the brisk and respectful alertness of other women when he talked. He knew that these other women belonged to a different class; his wife, the parson’s wife, the wives of the inspectors on other estates, these were not, of course, in the same sphere as the new mistress of Kleinwalde; but she was only a woman, and dress up a woman as you will, call her by what name you will, she is nothing but a woman, born to help and serve, never by any possibility even equal to a clever man like himself.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“Anna said to herself that this Spartan simplicity, this absence of every luxury that could still further soften an already languid and effeminate soul, was beautiful. Here, as in the whitewashed praying-places of the Puritans, if there were any beauty and any glory it must all come from within, be all of the spirit, be only the beauty of a clean life and the glory of kind thoughts. She pictured herself waking up in one of those unadorned beds with the morning sun shining on her face, and rising to go her daily round of usefulness in her quiet house, where there would be no quarrels, and no pitiful ambitions, and none of those many bitter heartaches that need never be. Would they not be happy days, those days of simple duties?”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“I would thump the cushions, and cry out, ‘Be independent, independent, independent! Don’t talk so much, and do more. Go your own way, and let your neighbour go his. Don’t meddle with other people when you have all your own work cut out for you being good yourself. Shake off all the props — —’” “Anna, thou art talking folly.” “‘ — shake them off, the props tradition and authority offer you, and go alone — crawl, stumble, stagger, but go alone. You won’t learn to walk without tumbles, and knocks, and bruises, but you’ll never learn to walk at all so long as there are props.”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim

“And as for narrow circles, why, how happy, how gloriously happy, I could be outside them, if only I were independent!” “Independent — independent,” repeated Uncle Joachim testily, “always this same foolish word. What hast thou in thy head, child, thy pretty woman’s head, made, if ever head was, to lean on a good man’s shoulder?” “Oh — good men’s shoulders,” said Anna, shrugging her own, “I don’t want to lean on anybody’s shoulder. I want to hold my head up straight, all by itself. Do you then admire limp women, dear uncle, whose heads roll about all loose till a good man comes along and props them up?”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Delphi Collected Works of Elizabeth von Arnim