--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whether it's Mrs Dalloway's lost love or…" description: "\"Whether it's Mrs Dalloway's lost love or Thérèse Raquin's burgeoning horror, The Paying Guests reminds us of every great novel we've gasped or winced a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/562/charlotte-mendelson-66329_apotheosis_whether-it-s-mrs-dalloway-s-lost-love-or_1620382.jpg" --- # Whether it's Mrs Dalloway's lost love or Thérèse Raquin's… ![“Whether it's Mrs Dalloway's lost love or Thérèse Raquin's burgeoning horror, The Paying Guests reminds us of every great novel we've gasped or winced at, or loudly urged the protagonists through, and it does not relent. . . . The Paying Guests is the apotheosis of [Waters'] talent; at least for…” quote by Charlotte Mendelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/562/charlotte-mendelson-66329_apotheosis_whether-it-s-mrs-dalloway-s-lost-love-or_1620382.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/562/charlotte-mendelson-66329_apotheosis_whether-it-s-mrs-dalloway-s-lost-love-or_1620382.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/562/charlotte-mendelson-66329_apotheosis_whether-it-s-mrs-dalloway-s-lost-love-or_1620382.jpg) > “Whether it's Mrs Dalloway's lost love or Thérèse Raquin's burgeoning horror, The Paying Guests reminds us of every great novel we've gasped or winced at, or loudly urged the protagonists through, and it does not relent. . . . The Paying Guests is the apotheosis of \[Waters'\] talent; at least for now. I have tried and failed to find a single negative thing to say about it. Her next will probably be even better. Until then, read it, Flaubert, Zola, and weep.” [Charlotte Mendelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mendelson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The novel exemplifies how great literature can evoke strong emotional reactions, both awe and discomfort, showcasing the author's talent. **In simple terms:** Great books provoke strong feelings and highlight an author's skill. Key Takeaway Appreciate powerful storytelling. Themes literature emotion talent critical appraisal Mood reflective enthusiastic Type critical appreciative When to use this quote - reading - literary discussion - book clubs Key Concepts Narrative impact authorial voice Questions to Reflect On - What emotional response does a novel evoke in you? - How does an author's talent shape your reading experience? A Different Perspective Even celebrated works have flaws that may be overlooked. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apotheosis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apotheosis/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Burgeoning Horror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burgeoning-horror-262973/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Great novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-novels/) [Guests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guests/) [Guests Apotheosis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guests-apotheosis-262974/) [Guests Reminds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guests-reminds-262972/) [Horror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror/) [Horror Paying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror-paying-262975/) [Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost/) [Lost love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost-love/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Mrs dalloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mrs-dalloway/) [Negative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/negative/) [Next](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Paying Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paying-guest-226112/) [Paying Guests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paying-guests-262976/) [Protagonists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protagonists/) [Talent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talent/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) [Zola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zola/) ## Related quotes > [I've ended up feeling fonder of 'The Paying Guests' than of any of my other novels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-waters/i-ve-ended-up-feeling-fonder-of-the-paying-guests-than-of-any-of-my/) [Sarah Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-waters/) > [In an industry where actors are known to steal scenes and roles from under your nose Sohail bhai has been going out of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vatsal-sheth/in-an-industry-where-actors-are-known-to-steal-scenes-and-roles-from/) [Vatsal Sheth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vatsal-sheth/) ## More by Charlotte Mendelson > [“But what she had always imagined were the two basic ingredients of happy adulthood, intellectual companionship and thrilling sex, are missing too.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-mendelson/but-what-she-had-always-imagined-were-the-two-basic-ingredients-of/) [Charlotte Mendelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mendelson/) > [Show me a novelist – or, indeed, a reader – who wasn’t a socially awkward, self-conscious adolescent, prone to clumsiness and excessive reading and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-mendelson/show-me-a-novelist-or-indeed-a-reader-who-wasn-t-a-socially-awkward/) [Charlotte Mendelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mendelson/) > [“He glances again at the door. Would a taste of the outside world be so unwise?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-mendelson/he-glances-again-at-the-door-would-a-taste-of-the-outside-world-be-so/) [Charlotte Mendelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mendelson/) [Explore all 4 Charlotte Mendelson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mendelson/) ## More Apotheosis quotes > [Language is the most elementary aspect to our humanness, probably. In addition to that, it's the embodiment, it's the apotheosis of the human experience,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/language-is-the-most-elementary-aspect-to-our-humanness-probably-in/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [“This is part of what it means to be a God, that You are a general principal of Being, instantiated throughout all of Being.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-webster/this-is-part-of-what-it-means-to-be-a-god-that-you-are-a-general/) [Sam Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-webster/) > [Poetry is the apotheosis of sentiment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/poetry-is-the-apotheosis-of-sentiment/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Winston Churchill was a man of blood and a politico without principle, whose apotheosis serves to corrupt every standard of honesty and morality in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-raico/winston-churchill-was-a-man-of-blood-and-a-politico-without-principle/) [Ralph Raico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-raico/) > [“Humanity is an organism, inherently rejecting all that is deleterious, that is, wrong, and absorbing after trial what is beneficial, that is, right. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-carnegie/humanity-is-an-organism-inherently-rejecting-all-that-is-deleterious/) [Andrew Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-carnegie/) > [People can say what they want, but historically, feminism in the Dominican Republic has been extremely strong. I guess the best way of saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/people-can-say-what-they-want-but-historically-feminism-in-the/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [A friend once told me that the real message Bram Stoker sought to convey in 'Dracula' is that a human being needs to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-queenan/a-friend-once-told-me-that-the-real-message-bram-stoker-sought-to/) [Joe Queenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-queenan/) > [Art is apotheosis; often, the complaint of beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/art-is-apotheosis-often-the-complaint-of-beauty/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [...vicinity to the sea is desirable, because it is easier to do nothing by the sea than anywhere else, and because bathing and basking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/vicinity-to-the-sea-is-desirable-because-it-is-easier-to-do-nothing/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [Rome was so mighty that it could not fall. It had to vanish in a cloud, like so many of the mythical heros of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/rome-was-so-mighty-that-it-could-not-fall-it-had-to-vanish-in-a-cloud/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Not every woman is a prostitute, but prostitution is the natural apotheosis of the feminine attitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bataille/not-every-woman-is-a-prostitute-but-prostitution-is-the-natural/) [Georges Bataille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bataille/) > [ That strain of anti-monopoly crusading egalitarianism really runs throughout American history from \[Tomas\] Jefferson to Woodrow Wilson, that finds its apotheosis in \[Louis\] Brandeis,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-rosen/that-strain-of-anti-monopoly-crusading-egalitarianism-really-runs/) [Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-rosen/) > [“Nothing is so mischievous as the apotheosis of error.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/nothing-is-so-mischievous-as-the-apotheosis-of-error/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [To give generously but appropriately and then, most difficult of all, and as the full apotheosis of the art, with feeling, in the moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-whyte/to-give-generously-but-appropriately-and-then-most-difficult-of-all/) [David Whyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-whyte/) > [The spectacle of insensitivity that is the gun lobby and its outspoken, out-of-their-mind apparatchiks, is the apotheosis of what the Republican Party has allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-weber/the-spectacle-of-insensitivity-that-is-the-gun-lobby-and-its/) [Steven Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-weber/) [Browse all 29 Apotheosis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apotheosis/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Whether it's Mrs Dalloway's lost love or Thérèse Raquin's burgeoning horror, The Paying Guests reminds us of every great novel we've gasped or winced at, or loudly urged the protagonists through, and it does not relent. . . . The Paying Guests is the apotheosis of [Waters'] talent; at least for now. I have tried and failed to find a single negative thing to say about it. Her next will probably be even better. 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