206 The Secret History Quotes: Unveiling the Hidden Meanings and Insights

Are you a lover of literature who finds yourself frequently seeking solace in a good book? If so, then you are no stranger to the power of poetic quotes and the way that they can transport you to another realm entirely. One of the most beloved works of literature of all time is undoubtedly "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt, with its obscure references, elegant language, and unforgettable characters. In this post, we will explore some of the book's most iconic quotes and delve deeper into the hidden meanings behind Tartt's lyrical prose. So, whether you are a longtime fan or a newcomer to this classic novel, keep reading for a journey into the heart of "The Secret History" quotes.

Good The Secret History Quotes (2024)

If you're a fan of Donna Tartt's "The Secret History," then you'll love these insightful and thought-provoking quotes. This novel, which is often included on must-read lists, is a tale of murder, academia, and friendship, and these lines capture the essence of the story.

• "Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful, we quiver before it."
• "I suppose at one time in my life I might have had any number of stories, but now there is no other. This is the only story I will ever be able to tell."
• "It is better to know one book intimately than a hundred superficially."
• "Forgive me, for all the things I did but mostly for the ones that I did not."
• "Does such a thing as ‘the fatal flaw,’ that showy dark crack running down the middle of a life, exist outside literature?"
• "We think we have many desires, but in fact we have only one. What is it?"
• "One likes to think that one is a sort of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but a person is actually much more like a room full of Chihuahuas, scampering around."
• "People love to believe in things that aren’t true. They have to. Otherwise, how could they endure the life they’ve been given?"
• "Anything is possible if you’re willing to take the blame."
• "There is nothing wrong with the love of Beauty. But Beauty – unless she is wed to something more meaningful – is always superficial."
• "The first duty of a human being is to assume the right functional relationship to society – more briefly, to find your real job, and do it."
• "Time changes everything except something within us which is always surprised by change."
• "In order to be happy you must be bright and good and dull and bad and anything else that you can possibly be."
• "Death is the mother of beauty; hence from her, alone, shall come fulfillment to our dreams and our desires."
• "I came to college to study great books, but all I wound up learning was great lies."
• "One must acknowledge with cryptic sympathy the power of the status quo."
• "You can’t ever really tell whether something’s a blessing or a curse when it’s happening."
• "Beauty is rarely soft or consolatory. Quite the contrary. Genuine beauty is always quite alarming."
• "Does such a thing as 'the fatal flaw' that showy dark crack running down the middle of a life, exist outside literature?"
• "What we did was terrible, but still I think it was the right thing to do."
• "The idea of the future, pregnant with an infinity of possibilities, is thus more fruitful than the future itself, and this is why we find more charm in hope than in possession, in dreams than in reality."
• "I suppose at one time in my life I might have had any number of stories, but now there is no other. This is the only story I will ever be able to tell."
• "He knew that what he was really seeking was only a pretext to be unhappy: something to complain about, like people who complain about the weather in order that they may have the satisfaction of having something to talk about."
• "The pieces... all of them were to come together, to be fused in the great work: his own work, the work that he had set out, with Becky's help, to achieve - the redemption of Andrew's soul."
• "I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail."
• "They were all free to do and to go wherever they pleased without explanations or fears."
• "There is no protection against happiness. It can come suddenly, like a gust of wind that knocks you off your feet, but it can also grow slowly, like a seed that germinates and takes root deep inside of you."
• "Our understanding of the universe is like a tale that we tell ourselves to help us make sense of the world as it really is, a story that gives meaning to the chaos and confusion of our lives."
• "...we're all going to die anyway, so why not live a little?"
• "He always felt that there was more to have, more to be, more to give, and that the stories that he told himself about who he was and what he wanted were never quite the whole truth."
• "...the future was a blank canvas, just waiting for them to paint their dreams upon it."
• "The past is always with us, but it does not have to control us. We are free to create our own future, to make of our lives what we will."
• "The power of our dreams is greater than the power of the world to crush them."
• "People always want to know how the story ends, but what they forget is that the story never really ends - it simply evolves and continues on."
• "The truth is a puzzle that we are always trying to solve, but the more we dig, the more we realize that it is not a puzzle at all, but a never-ending labyrinth."
• "In the end, it is not what we have done that matters most, but who we have become in the process."

funny the secret history quotes (2024)

Are you tired of pretending to be well-read and intellectual? Do you want to impress your crush with some serious literary wisdom? Well, look no further, because we've got the perfect solution for you - The Secret History quotes! Not only will you sound smart, but you'll also be able to add a touch of dark humor to any conversation. So, whether you're a Greek scholar or a pizza delivery guy, read on to discover the best quotes from Donna Tartt's cult classic.

• "Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful, we quiver before it." - Donna Tartt
• "I envy people who can just sleep like no one's watching." - Donna Tartt
• "Anxiety was not an emotion I could ever remember feeling when I was thirteen; I used to describe myself as feeling 'forever nineteen.'" - Donna Tartt
• "I am hideously sentimental, Miss Corcoran. One of my finer qualities." - Donna Tartt
• "It's not about the actual death of the person so much as the death of a dream." - Donna Tartt
• "I'm not in love with him, he just scratches a certain itch." - Donna Tartt
• "When I get mad I put on my music and dance around in my underwear." - Donna Tartt
• "I'm not really a book person. I just read the classics when I'm in a bad mood." - Donna Tartt
• "I'm always relieved when someone is delivering a eulogy and I realize I'm listening to it." - Donna Tartt
• "Not everyone can be a truffle. Most of us are potatoes." - Donna Tartt
• "How dull it is to pause, to make an end, to rest unburnished, not to shine in use!" - Donna Tartt
• "The old ways are sometimes the best ways." - Donna Tartt
• "I'm not eccentric. It's just that I'm more alive than most people. I'm an unpopular electric eel set in a pond of catfish." - Donna Tartt
• "You can't repeat the past." "Can't repeat the past?" he cried incredulously. "Why of course you can!" - Donna Tartt
• "I could never resist the call of the blank page." - Donna Tartt
• "I wasn't much for fancy book learning but I did get quite an education in the end." - Donna Tartt

wise the secret history quotes (sayings)

Delving into the world of literature can be a blissful experience, especially when there's a masterpiece like 'The Secret History' involved. This compelling story encompasses themes of friendship, love, tragedy, and above all, the human psyche. Today, we're going to unravel some of the most thought-provoking quotes from this novel and how they reflect the complex nature of human emotions.

• "Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful, we quiver before it." - Donna Tartt
• "Language is nothing but a system of symbols that allow us to communicate experience to others." - Donna Tartt
• "It's the same with people who say, 'Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger.' Even people who say this must realize that the exact opposite is true." - Donna Tartt
• "Discomfort is always a necessary part of enlightenment." - Donna Tartt
• "It's a lot easier to be lost than found. It's the reason we're always searching and rarely discovered—so many locks not enough keys." - Donna Tartt
• "I suppose at one time in my life I might have had any number of stories, but now there is no other. This is the only story I will ever be able to tell." - Donna Tartt
• "We can't make ourselves feel great. Only wonder does that." - Donna Tartt
• "Never let a fool kiss you or a kiss fool you." - Donna Tartt
• "Friendship is less simple. It is long and hard to obtain but when one has it there's no getting rid of it." - Donna Tartt
• "I suppose it’s not a social norm, and not a manly thing to do — to feel, discuss feelings. So that’s what I’m giving the finger to. Social norms and stuff…what good are social norms, really? I think all they do is project a limited and harmful image of people. It thus impedes a broader social acceptance of what someone, or a group of people, might actually be like." - Donna Tartt
• "It is easy to see things in black and white. It is much harder to see things in color." - Donna Tartt
• "The truth is, we don't know what we need half the time. And that's fine." - Donna Tartt
• "Also that spirits can haunt any place, so that the earth, the air, the water, all become repositories for good or bad ‘vibrations’" - Donna Tartt
• "I suppose, at base, books are like lovers—that cause of endless fascination, the thing you can’t stop obsessing about, or find that your mind keeps returning." - Donna Tartt
• "One doesn’t become a philosopher by talking; one becomes a philosopher by speaking only when compelled to." - Donna Tartt

famous the secret history quotes (2024)

Unearthing the secrets of the past can be an electrifying experience, a thrilling journey into the unknown. And what better way to accompany your adventures than with some of the most tantalizing quotes from Donna Tartt's novel, The Secret History? These poignant and evocative passages offer insight into the human psyche while keeping you on the edge of your seat. Get ready for a mind-bending ride through the hidden depths of literature!

• "Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful, we quiver before it." - Donna Tartt
• "It's a very Greek idea, and a very profound one. Beauty is terror." - Donna Tartt
• "What we don’t see, what we don’t know, what we can’t imagine, that is what rules the world." - Donna Tartt
• "The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of Hell, a hell of Heaven." - John Milton
• "The classics can console. But not enough." - Donna Tartt
• "Things have lives also." - Donna Tartt
• "At some point we all look up and realize we are lost in a maze." - Donna Tartt
• "Silence is the perfectest herald of joy." - William Shakespeare
• "I miss everything about him. Even the pain." - Donna Tartt
• "The overpowering, uncomfortable feeling that neither of us was pretending at all." - Donna Tartt
• "Memory can make a thing seem to have been much more than it was." - Donna Tartt
• "All great literature is one of two stories; a man goes on a journey or a stranger comes to town." - Leo Tolstoy
• "The world is changed because you are made of ivory and gold. The curves of your lips rewrite history." - Oscar Wilde
• "Death is the mother of beauty." - Wallace Stevens
• "In order to really be able to live one’s life, one would have to abandon the limits of the mind and of the normal human activity, which is society." - Donna Tartt
• "Beauty is rarely soft or consolatory. Quite the contrary. Genuine beauty is always quite alarming." - Donna Tartt

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is "The Secret History"?

"The Secret History" is a novel written by Donna Tartt that tells the story of a group of college students who become entangled in a mysterious and dangerous act of debauchery.

2. What are some of the most famous quotes from "The Secret History"?

Some of the most famous quotes from "The Secret History" include "Beauty is terror" and "Sometimes I couldn't help feeling that I was the only person in the world who was truly alive."

3. Who would enjoy reading "The Secret History"?

Anyone who enjoys dark, atmospheric stories about college students, mysteries, and intrigue would likely enjoy reading "The Secret History."

4. Can "The Secret History" be recommended for a book club?

Yes, "The Secret History" is a great choice for book clubs that are interested in exploring complex characters, themes of loyalty and betrayal, and discussions about morality and ethics.

Conclusion

In conclusion, "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt is a captivating novel that offers readers a unique glimpse into the world of academia, friendship, and secrets. With its thought-provoking plot and complex characters, it's no surprise that fans of the book continue to seek out quotes and insights from its pages. Whether you're looking for guidance on relationships, morality, or simply trying to unravel the intricacies of the novel, "The Secret History quotes" are a valuable resource that will always keep you coming back for more.