Tom gazed at the chair; and, suddenly as he looked at it, a most extraordinary change seemed to come over it. The carving of the back gradually assumed the lineaments and expression of an old shrivelled human face; the damask cushion became an antique, flapped waistcoat; the round knobs grew into a couple of feet, encased in red cloth slippers; and the old chair looked like a very ugly old man, of the previous century, with his arms a-kimbo. Tom sat up in bed, and rubbed his eyes to dispel the illusion. No. The chair was an ugly old gentleman; and what was more, he was winking at Tom Smart. ~ The Pickwick Papers
Quotes
So does the eye of
So does the eye of Heaven itself become an evil eye, when incapable or sordid hands are interposed between it and the things it looks upon to bless. ~ Hard Times
The Voices in the Waves
And the voices in the waves are always whispering to Florence, in their ceaseless murmuring, of love – of love, eternal and illimitable, not bounded by the confines of this world, or by the end of time, but ranging still, beyond the sea, beyond the sky, to the invisible country far away! ~ Dombey and Son
“She had gained a reputation
“She had gained a reputation for beauty, and (which is often another thing) was beautiful.” ~ Little Dorrit
Any man may be in
“Any man may be in good spirits and good temper when he’s well dressed. There ain’t much credit in that.” ~ Martin Chuzzlewit
“This reminds me, Godmother, to
“This reminds me, Godmother, to ask you a serious question. You are as wise as wise can be (having been brought up by the fairies), and you can tell me this: Is it better to have had a good thing and lost it, or never to have had it?” ~ Our Mutual Friend
“Hope, you see, Wal’r,” said
“Hope, you see, Wal’r,” said the Captain, sagely, “Hope. It’s that as animates you. Hope is a buoy, for which you overhaul your Little Warbler, sentimental diwision, but Lord, my lad, like any other buoy, it only floats; it can’t be steered nowhere. Along with the figure-head of Hope,’ said the Captain, ‘there’s a anchor; but what’s the good of my having a anchor, if I can’t find no bottom to let it go in?” ~ Dombey and Son
Mrs. Varden was a lady
Mrs. Varden was a lady of what is commonly called an uncertain temper–a phrase which being interpreted signifies a temper tolerably certain to make everybody more or less uncomfortable. ~ Barnaby Rudge
For a long time, no
For a long time, no village girl would dress her hair or bosom with the sweetest flower from that field of death: and after many a year had come and gone, the berries growing there, were still believed to leave too deep a stain upon the hand that plucked them. ~ The Battle of Life
No One is Useless in this World
“No one is useless in this world,” retorted the Secretary, “who lightens the burden of it for any one else.” ~ Our Mutual Friend
