Poor people Quote by Barbara Comyns
““She cleared her throat once or twice, and said something about poor people should eat a lot of herrings, as they were most nutritious, also she had heard poor people eat heaps of sheeps' heads and she went on to ask if I ever cooked them. I said I would rather be dead than cook or eat a sheep's head; I'd seen them in butchers' shops with awful eyes and bits of wool sticking to their skulls. After that helpful hints for the poor were forgotten.””
About This Quote
Source Short story: The House of the Spirits, Barbara Comyns, 1963
The narrator recounts a bizarre, graphic description of a woman's misguided advice about feeding the poor, highlighting absurdity and discomfort.
In simple terms: A strange, unsettling anecdote about advice on food for the poor.
Question the value of bizarre advice.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- discussions about poverty
- food policy debates
- literary analysis
- social satire
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What does this story reveal about attitudes toward poverty?
- How does shock affect our perception of advice?
The anecdote may be exaggerated or fictional, limiting its factual relevance.