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Amazing Quote by Charlotte Brontë

“It was not without a certain wild pleasure I ran before the wind, delivering my trouble of mind to the measureless air-torrent thundering through space. Descending the laurel walk, I faced the wreck of a chestnut-tree; it stood up, black and riven: the trunk, split down the centere, gasped…” quote by Charlotte Brontë
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““It was not without a certain wild pleasure I ran before the wind, delivering my trouble of mind to the measureless air-torrent thundering through space. Descending the laurel walk, I faced the wreck of a chestnut-tree; it stood up, black and riven: the trunk, split down the centere, gasped ghastly. The cloven halves were not broken for each other, for the firm base and strong roots kept them unsundered below; through communtiy of vitality was destroyed -- the sap could flow no more: their great boughs on each side were dead, and next winter's tempests would be sure to fell one or both to earth: as yet, however, they might be said to form one tree -- a ruin, but and entire ruin. 'You did right to hold fast to each other,' I said: as if the monster splinters were living things, and could hear me. 'I think, scathed as you look, and charred and scorched, there must be a little sense of life in you yet, rising out of that adhesion at the faithful, honest roots: you will never have green leaves more -- never more see birds making nests and singing idylls in your boughs; the time of pleasure and love is over with you; but you are not desolate: each of you has a comrade to sympathize with him in his decay.' As I looked up at them, the moon appeared momentarily in that part of the sky which filled their fissure; her disc was blood-red and half overcast; she seemed to throw on me one bewildered, dreary glance, and buried herself again instantly in the deep drift of cloud. The wind fell, for a second, round Thornfield; but far away over wood and water poured a wild, melancholy wail: it was sad to listen to, and I ran off again.””

Charlotte Brontë

About This Quote

Source Novel: Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë, 1847

The narrator reflects on the destruction of a once‑vibrant tree, seeing its split trunk as a symbol of loss, yet finds solace in shared decay and lingering life within the roots.

In simple terms: A broken tree shows loss but also shared survival in its roots.

Key Takeaway

Recognize connection even in ruin.

Themes

loss nature resilience solitude death

Mood

melancholy reflective somber

Type

literary philosophical poetic

When to use this quote

  • grief counseling
  • environmental reflection
  • literary analysis
  • creative writing
  • philosophical contemplation

Key Concepts

symbolism interdependence mortality

Questions to Reflect On

  • What does the tree’s split teach about human relationships?
  • How can shared suffering become a source of comfort?
A Different Perspective

The metaphor may overlook hope for renewal beyond decay.

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