“It was the custom, rigidly adhered to," Luke said, turning the brandy in his glass, "for the public executioner, before a quartering, to outline his knife strokes in chalk upon the belly of his victim--for fear of a slip, you… — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
I suppose, I hoped, by setting a particularly brutal ancient rite in the present and in my own village to shock the story's readers with a graphic dramatization of the pointless violence and general inhumanity in their own lives. — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
I can't help it when people are frightened," says Merricat. "I always want to frighten them more. — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
“She could not remember ever being truly happy in her adult life; her years with her mother had been built up devotedly around small… — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
“Upstairs Margaret said abruptly, 'I suppose it starts to happen first in the suburbs,' and when Brad said, 'What starts to happen?' she said… — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
“The beautiful clarity of all marked outlines occurred to her--there would be a deep satisfaction in strengthening fences, for instance, going along on the… — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
“And we held each other in the dark hall and laughed, with the tears running down our cheeks and echoes of our laughter going… — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
“Why do people want to talk to each other? I mean, what are the things people always want to find out about other people?” — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
Within, walls continued upright, bricks met neatly, floors were firm, and doors were sensibly shut; silence lay steadily against the wood and stone of… — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
“It was as though the people needed the ugliness of the village, and fed on it. The houses and the stores seemed to have… — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
“Eleanor—“I plan to stay up and read for a while.” “Are you still reading Pamela?” Eleanor asked the doctor. “Volume two. I have three… — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
February, when the days of winter seem endless and no amount of wistful recollecting can bring back any air of summer. — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
“it’s quite a hazard, quite a hazard indeed, people knocking you down. Still, it’s a genuine pleasure to find one as willing as you… — Shirley Jackson Copy Share Image
