--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: All knives and forks were working away at…" description: "\"All knives and forks were working away at a rate that was quite alarming; very few words were spoken; and everybody seemed to eat his utmost, in self d..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/charles-dickens-34_breakfast_all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-a_1276945.jpg" --- # All knives and forks were working away at a rate that was… ![“All knives and forks were working away at a rate that was quite alarming; very few words were spoken; and everybody seemed to eat his utmost, in self defence, as if a famine were expected to set in before breakfast-time to-morrow morning, and it had become high time to assert the first law of…” quote by Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/charles-dickens-34_breakfast_all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-a_1276945.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/charles-dickens-34_breakfast_all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-a_1276945.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/charles-dickens-34_breakfast_all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-a_1276945.jpg) > “All knives and forks were working away at a rate that was quite alarming; very few words were spoken; and everybody seemed to eat his utmost, in self defence, as if a famine were expected to set in before breakfast-time to-morrow morning, and it had become high time to assert the first law of nature.” [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People are so preoccupied with self‑preservation that they ignore communication, acting as if disaster is imminent. **In simple terms:** People focus on self‑defence, neglecting dialogue. Key Takeaway Pause to listen before reacting. Themes self‑preservation communication anxiety Mood tense reflective Type literary observational When to use this quote - dinner parties - business meetings - family gatherings - political negotiations Key Concepts social behavior survival instinct human nature Questions to Reflect On - Do you prioritize speaking or listening? - How does fear shape your interactions? A Different Perspective Neglecting dialogue can worsen misunderstandings. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cooking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooking/) [Culinary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culinary/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Defence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defence/) [Famine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/famine/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Law of nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law-of-nature/) [Laws of nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laws-of-nature/) [Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self defence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-defence/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [So much alarmed that she is quite alarming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/so-much-alarmed-that-she-is-quite-alarming/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [“Genuine beauty is always quite alarming.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/genuine-beauty-is-always-quite-alarming/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [It would have been very alarming - morally, and in other ways too - if an attack of that nature, the 11 September attacks,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-would-have-been-very-alarming-morally-and-in-other-ways-too-if-an/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“one can even kill a cow in self defence…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vineet-asopa/one-can-even-kill-a-cow-in-self-defence/) Vineet Asopa > [ \[Somali maritime violence\] is a response to greedy Western nations, who invade and exploit Somalia's water resources illegally. 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The official mind, on the contrary, is and has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-fisher/the-academic-mind-as-we-know-is-sometimes-capable-of-assuming-an/) [Ronald Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-fisher/) > [If violent crime is to be curbed, it is only the intended victim who can do it. The felon does not fear the police,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-cooper/if-violent-crime-is-to-be-curbed-it-is-only-the-intended-victim-who/) [Jeff Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-cooper/) > [All I can say is we will fully utilise our right to self-defence. No one can just do what they want on our borders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-shah/all-i-can-say-is-we-will-fully-utilise-our-right-to-self-defence-no/) [Amit Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-shah/) > [“Your self-defense becomes a self-defeat when you are doing it for selfish reasons! 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She acknowledged their homage by bending her head, and giving them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/the-three-customers-pulled-off-their-hats-to-madame-defarge-with/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [“What a situation!' cried Miss Squeers; '...What is the reason that men fall in love with me, whether I like it or not, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/what-a-situation-cried-miss-squeers-what-is-the-reason-that-men-fall/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [I admire machinery as much is any man, and am as thankful to it as any man can be for what it does for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-admire-machinery-as-much-is-any-man-and-am-as-thankful-to-it-as-any/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [“Mr. Pickwick was a philosopher, but philosophers are only men in armour, after all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/mr-pickwick-was-a-philosopher-but-philosophers-are-only-men-in-armour/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) [Explore all 2,309 Charles Dickens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) ## More Alarming quotes > [I've had an alarming amount of concussions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-reynolds/i-ve-had-an-alarming-amount-of-concussions/) [Ryan Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-reynolds/) > [There's a diversion between economic reality - 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Putnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-putnam/) Browse all 68 Alarming quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "All knives and forks were working away at a rate that was quite alarming; very few words were spoken; and everybody seemed to eat his utmost, in self defence, as if a famine were expected to set in before breakfast-time to-morrow morning, and it had become high time to assert the first law of nature.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles Dickens" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-at-a-rate-that-was-quite/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alarming" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-at-a-rate-that-was-quite/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/charles-dickens-34_breakfast_all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-a_1276945.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/charles-dickens-34_breakfast_all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-a_1276945.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/charles-dickens-34_breakfast_all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-a_1276945.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“All knives and forks were working away at a rate that was quite alarming; very few words were spoken; and…” — Charles Dickens", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Charles Dickens", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "All knives and forks were working...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-at-a-rate-that-was-quite/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/all-knives-and-forks-were-working-away-at-a-rate-that-was-quite/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```