--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Mrs. Alingsby was tall and weird and…" description: "\"“Mrs. Alingsby was tall and weird and intense, dressed rather like a bird-of-paradise that had been out in a high gale, but very well connected. She ha..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/052/e-f-benson-29464_music_mrs-alingsby-was-tall-and-weird-and-inte_200856.png" --- # Mrs. Alingsby was tall and weird and intense, dressed… ![“Mrs. Alingsby was tall and weird and intense, dressed rather like a bird-of-paradise that had been out in a high gale, but very well connected. She had long straight hair which fell over her forehead, and sometimes got in her eyes, and she wore on her head a scarlet jockey-cap with an immense…” quote by E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/052/e-f-benson-29464_music_mrs-alingsby-was-tall-and-weird-and-inte_200856.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/052/e-f-benson-29464_music_mrs-alingsby-was-tall-and-weird-and-inte_200856.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/052/e-f-benson-29464_music_mrs-alingsby-was-tall-and-weird-and-inte_200856.png) > ““Mrs. Alingsby was tall and weird and intense, dressed rather like a bird-of-paradise that had been out in a high gale, but very well connected. She had long straight hair which fell over her forehead, and sometimes got in her eyes, and she wore on her head a scarlet jockey-cap with an immense cameo in front of it. She hated all art that was earlier than 1923, and a considerable lot of what was later. In music, on the other hand, she was primitive, and thought Bach decadent: in literature her taste was for stories without a story, and poems without metre or meaning. But she had collected round her a group of interesting outlaws, of whom the men looked like women, and the women like nothing at all, and though nobody ever knew what they were talking about, they themselves were talked about. Lucia had been to a party of hers, where they all sat in a room with black walls, and listened to early Italian music on a spinet while a charcoal brazier on a blue hearth was fed with incense… Lucia’s general opinion of her was that she might be useful up to a point, for she certainly excited interest.”” [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mrs. Alingsby is an eccentric, flamboyant figure whose tastes and social circle defy conventional norms, creating intrigue and curiosity. **In simple terms:** Eccentric character with odd tastes and friends. Key Takeaway Embrace uniqueness in others. Themes eccentricity art culture social circles curiosity Mood playful ironic Type literary character study When to use this quote - social gatherings - art criticism - literary analysis - character study Key Concepts modernism aesthetic rebellion identity subculture Questions to Reflect On - What draws you to eccentric personalities? - How do unconventional tastes affect social dynamics? A Different Perspective Her taste may alienate mainstream appreciation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alingsby Tall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alingsby-tall-2098340/) [Literature Taste](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature-taste-2098342/) [Lucia General](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lucia-general-2098341/) [Lucia Party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lucia-party-2098343/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Straight hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/straight-hair/) [Talked Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talked-lucia-2098339/) ## Related quotes > [Oh, I am very old fashioned about my literature taste. I like Henry James. I like George Elliot. I like Dostoyevsky. I like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-walger/oh-i-am-very-old-fashioned-about-my-literature-taste-i-like-henry/) [Sonya Walger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-walger/) > [“There are two kinds of taste in the appreciation of imaginative literature: the taste for emotions of surprise and the taste for emotions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/there-are-two-kinds-of-taste-in-the-appreciation-of-imaginative/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [ My hair is wild and free, but I've always been told that \[straight hair\] is more polished, and a more polished version of yourself… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-wasson/my-hair-is-wild-and-free-but-i-ve-always-been-told-that-straight-hair/) [Erin Wasson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-wasson/) > [I think the '90s is the reason why I recently had to find natural haircare products to allow my hair to grow. That was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-sidora/i-think-the-90s-is-the-reason-why-i-recently-had-to-find-natural/) [Drew Sidora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-sidora/) > [I've never felt like there's just one way to be beautiful. Tall or short, straight hair or curly, it doesn't matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/i-ve-never-felt-like-there-s-just-one-way-to-be-beautiful-tall-or/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) > [Black is confusing. Where does the line start and stop with what is black and what isn't black? People that are mixed-race, or, imagine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santan-dave/black-is-confusing-where-does-the-line-start-and-stop-with-what-is/) [Santan Dave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santan-dave/) > [Just when you look around and you see people with straight hair in media, you kind of feel the need to fit in, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amandla-stenberg/just-when-you-look-around-and-you-see-people-with-straight-hair-in/) [Amandla Stenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amandla-stenberg/) > [“LOVE AND SEX She glows with a pleasurable subtleness that thanks me with every inhale and exhale as our bodies move. Her calm cool…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luccini-shurod/love-and-sex-she-glows-with-a-pleasurable-subtleness-that-thanks-me/) [Luccini Shurod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luccini-shurod/) > [The lives we live are a bit of a straight-hair vs. curly-hair thing. We often want what we don't have. In reality, it's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-sinek/the-lives-we-live-are-a-bit-of-a-straight-hair-vs-curly-hair-thing-we/) [Simon Sinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-sinek/) > [“She's been scouted by Ford and Elite- real New York agencies. Micah, the agent for Elite- a tall black guy in silver eyeliner- said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-abu-jaber/she-s-been-scouted-by-ford-and-elite-real-new-york-agencies-micah-the/) [Diana Abu-Jaber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-abu-jaber/) > [For those unaware, transitioning from a relaxed to a natural texture means also transitioning from conventional to fringe society. Abandoning straight hair labels one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerrika-hinton/for-those-unaware-transitioning-from-a-relaxed-to-a-natural-texture/) [Jerrika Hinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerrika-hinton/) > [When I grew up, you needed to have straight hair. It's symbolic of needing to be like everyone else, needing to look like everyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-roiphe/when-i-grew-up-you-needed-to-have-straight-hair-it-s-symbolic-of/) [Anne Roiphe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-roiphe/) > [When I was a kid, I got a bob because all of the other girls on my soccer team with straight hair had one,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-aldridge/when-i-was-a-kid-i-got-a-bob-because-all-of-the-other-girls-on-my/) [Lily Aldridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-aldridge/) > [Nobody is really happy with what's on their head. People with straight hair want curly, people with curly want straight, and bald people want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-rudner/nobody-is-really-happy-with-what-s-on-their-head-people-with-straight/) [Rita Rudner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-rudner/) > [“I watched her long, straight hair swaying right and left where it met her shoulders.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-watched-her-long-straight-hair-swaying-right-and-left-where-it-met/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## More by E.F. Benson > [“There were some hours to spare before his ship sailed, and having deposited his luggage, including a locked leather despatch-case, on board, he lunched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/there-were-some-hours-to-spare-before-his-ship-sailed-and-having/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [Vermouth always makes me brilliant unless it makes me idiotic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/vermouth-always-makes-me-brilliant-unless-it-makes-me-idiotic/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [“The subject dropped, and we sat on in the dusk that was rapidly deepening into night. The door into the hall was open at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/the-subject-dropped-and-we-sat-on-in-the-dusk-that-was-rapidly/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [“The functions of the human frame are, broadly speaking, known. They are a country, anyhow, that has been charted and mapped out. But outside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/the-functions-of-the-human-frame-are-broadly-speaking-known-they-are/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [“Miss Elizabeth Mapp might have been forty, and she had taken advantage of this opportunity by being just a year or two older. Her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/miss-elizabeth-mapp-might-have-been-forty-and-she-had-taken-advantage/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [...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/) > [“With regard to religion, finally, it may be briefly said that she believed in God in much the same way as she believed in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/with-regard-to-religion-finally-it-may-be-briefly-said-that-she/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [When one is happy there is no time to be fatigued; being happy engrosses the whole attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/when-one-is-happy-there-is-no-time-to-be-fatigued-being-happy/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [“He looked sharply towards the pollarded trees. 'Yes, just there,' he said. 'I saw it plainly, and equally plainly I saw it not. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/he-looked-sharply-towards-the-pollarded-trees-yes-just-there-he-said/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [“I wonder why he hastened to tell us that George Hearne was buried in the churchyard, and then added that naturally he was!' 'It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/i-wonder-why-he-hastened-to-tell-us-that-george-hearne-was-buried-in/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [An idea so luminous flashed across her brain that she almost thought the room had leaped into light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/an-idea-so-luminous-flashed-across-her-brain-that-she-almost-thought/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [“Ah, this delicious night air,' she said, luxuriously sniffing in the coolness. 'Night air and gardening are the great tonics. There is nothing so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/ah-this-delicious-night-air-she-said-luxuriously-sniffing-in-the/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [“I saw his face, too; it was the face of the driver of the hearse, with a mole on the left cheek. Then he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/i-saw-his-face-too-it-was-the-face-of-the-driver-of-the-hearse-with-a/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [The hours of the morning between breakfast and lunch were the time which the inhabitants of Riseholme chiefly devoted to spying on each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/the-hours-of-the-morning-between-breakfast-and-lunch-were-the-time/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [There's many things in this world that will depress you, and make you good for nothing, if you take them seriously, and that cheer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/there-s-many-things-in-this-world-that-will-depress-you-and-make-you/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) [Explore all 18 E.F. Benson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) ## More Music quotes > [I feel like I definitely have a real sporty style, more so than a lot of people in G.O.O.D. Music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-sean/i-feel-like-i-definitely-have-a-real-sporty-style-more-so-than-a-lot/) [Big Sean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-sean/) > [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/) [Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I'm at the edge of the world, Where do I go from here? Do I disappear? Edge of the world, Should I sink or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bring-me-the-horizon/i-m-at-the-edge-of-the-world-where-do-i-go-from-here-do-i-disappear/) [Bring Me The Horizon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bring-me-the-horizon/) > [I've seen a lot of people come out of Carol City, but I had this distinct vision for Carol City, just me coming out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-curry/i-ve-seen-a-lot-of-people-come-out-of-carol-city-but-i-had-this/) [Denzel Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-curry/) > [When you listen to someone improvise, the notes that are played are only half the story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-laws/when-you-listen-to-someone-improvise-the-notes-that-are-played-are/) [Hubert Laws](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-laws/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [ “Downloading's the same as what I used to do. I used to tape the charts of the songs I liked \[off the radio\]. I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-gallagher/downloading-s-the-same-as-what-i-used-to-do-i-used-to-tape-the-charts/) [Liam Gallagher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liam-gallagher/) > [I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoodie-allen/i-ve-been-writing-songs-since-i-was-10-years-old-and-always-had-a/) [Hoodie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoodie-allen/) > [Each woman is like an instrument, waiting to be learned, loved, and finely played, to have at last her own true music made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/each-woman-is-like-an-instrument-waiting-to-be-learned-loved-and/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I want people to hear my lyrics and my melodies and say, 'That dude's in pain.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-moody/i-want-people-to-hear-my-lyrics-and-my-melodies-and-say-that-dude-s/) [Ivan Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-moody/) > [I make dance music because I love to dance. But I want to think at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stromae/i-make-dance-music-because-i-love-to-dance-but-i-want-to-think-at-the/) [Stromae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stromae/) > [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/) [Maria Brink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brink/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) [Adam Ant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ant/) > [I received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. I want to give something back to the younger generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-received-a-beautiful-welcome-to-the-world-of-music-i-want-to-give/) [Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/) [Browse all 55,293 Music quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Mrs. Alingsby was tall and weird and intense, dressed rather like a bird-of-paradise that had been out in a high gale, but very well connected. She had long straight hair which fell over her forehead, and sometimes got in her eyes, and she wore on her head a scarlet jockey-cap with an immense cameo in front of it. She hated all art that was earlier than 1923, and a considerable lot of what was later. In music, on the other hand, she was primitive, and thought Bach decadent: in literature her taste was for stories without a story, and poems without metre or meaning. But she had collected round her a group of interesting outlaws, of whom the men looked like women, and the women like nothing at all, and though nobody ever knew what they were talking about, they themselves were talked about. Lucia had been to a party of hers, where they all sat in a room with black walls, and listened to early Italian music on a spinet while a charcoal brazier on a blue hearth was fed with incense… Lucia’s general opinion of her was that she might be useful up to a point, for she certainly excited interest.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "E.F. 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