Long ago Quote by Charles Dickens
““The rats had crept out of their holes to look on, and they remained looking on for hours; soldiers and police often passing between them and the spectacle, and making a barrier behind which they slunk, and through which they peeped. The father had long ago taken up his bundle and hidden himself away with it, when the women who had tended the bundle while it lay on the base of the fountain, sat there watching the running of the water and the rolling of the Fancy Ball - when the one woman who had stood conspicuous, knitting, still knitted on with the steadfastness of Fate. The water of the fountain ran, the swift river ran, the day ran into evening, so much life ran in the city ran into death according to rule, time and tide waited for no man, the rats were sleeping close together in their dark holes again, the Fancy Ball was lighted up at supper, all things ran their course””
About This Quote
Source Novel: Little Dorrit, 1857
A vivid scene shows how life continues amid chaos, with people watching events pass while time and fate move inexorably forward.
In simple terms: Life goes on despite turmoil; time waits for no one.
Key Takeaway
Observe and accept life's flow.
Themes
fate
time
society
observation
inevitability
Mood
reflective
melancholic
Type
literary
observational
When to use this quote
- watching a public event
- city life
- nighttime routines
- people seeking meaning
- rats as symbols of survival
Key Concepts
human behavior
social spectacle
existential rhythm
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you find meaning in routine?
- What does the 'steady knitting' symbolize?
A Different Perspective
The passage may romanticize suffering, overlooking individual agency.
