---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Oh dear! A drunken infidel weaver! said…"
description: "\"Oh dear! A drunken infidel weaver! said Mr. Hale to himself.\" — Elizabeth Gaskell"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/355/elizabeth-gaskell-894_dear_oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr_1977030.jpg"
---

#  Oh dear! A drunken infidel weaver! said Mr. Hale to himself.

![“Oh dear! A drunken infidel weaver! said Mr. Hale to himself.” quote by Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/355/elizabeth-gaskell-894_dear_oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr_1977030.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/355/elizabeth-gaskell-894_dear_oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr_1977030.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/355/elizabeth-gaskell-894_dear_oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr_1977030.jpg)

> “Oh dear! A drunken infidel weaver! said Mr. Hale to himself.”

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The exclamation humorously critiques a drunken person’s reckless behavior, highlighting social judgment.

**In simple terms:** Mocking reckless drunkenness.

Key Takeaway

Avoid excessive drinking.

Themes

social critique humor morality

Mood

wry critical

Type

literary satirical

When to use this quote

- pub gatherings
- social gatherings
- moral lessons
- personal vices

Key Concepts

literature 19th‑century society character study

Questions to Reflect On

- What does this reveal about societal attitudes?
- How can humor be used to address harmful behavior?

A Different Perspective

Humor may downplay serious consequences of alcoholism.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Infidel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infidel/) [Wine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wine/)

## Related quotes

> [But Mr. Hale resolved that he would not be disturbed by any such nonsensical idea; so he lay awake, determining not to think about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/but-mr-hale-resolved-that-he-would-not-be-disturbed-by-any-such/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [The older man cocked his head and gave a laugh, "We get all the ladies. But for some reason I don't think you're here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-carter/the-older-man-cocked-his-head-and-gave-a-laugh-we-get-all-the-ladies/)

[Ally Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-carter/)

> [If you don't mind me saying, Mr. Hale. She's a keeper." He pointed in Kat's direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-carter/if-you-don-t-mind-me-saying-mr-hale-she-s-a-keeper-he-pointed-in-kat/)

[Ally Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-carter/)

> [“I shall arm myself with a knife" said Mr. Hale: "the days of eating fruit so primitively as you describe are over with me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/i-shall-arm-myself-with-a-knife-said-mr-hale-the-days-of-eating-fruit/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [“At all times it is a bewildering thing to the poor weaver to see his employer removing from house to house, each one grander…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/at-all-times-it-is-a-bewildering-thing-to-the-poor-weaver-to-see-his/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [Look back. Look back at me." Richard Armitage spoke this line in the movie North and South as he watched Miss Hale drive away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/look-back-look-back-at-me-richard-armitage-spoke-this-line-in-the/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [I was conducted in the evening to a tavern where several of the weavers who advocate the principles of the People's Charter were in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-mayhew/i-was-conducted-in-the-evening-to-a-tavern-where-several-of-the/)

[Henry Mayhew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-mayhew/)

> [Darkroom: A Memoir in Black and White is remarkable for its truth-telling about two important issues concerning Alabama's past and present: the civil rights…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sena-jeter-naslund/darkroom-a-memoir-in-black-and-white-is-remarkable-for-its-truth/)

[Sena Jeter Naslund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sena-jeter-naslund/)

> [I think of myself as a songwriter, a weaver of story and imagination in a way that a novelist might write a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pj-harvey/i-think-of-myself-as-a-songwriter-a-weaver-of-story-and-imagination/)

[PJ Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pj-harvey/)

> [The signs of the zodiac are karmic patterns; the planets are the looms; the will is the weaver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-cayce/the-signs-of-the-zodiac-are-karmic-patterns-the-planets-are-the-looms/)

[Edgar Cayce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-cayce/)

> [I call myself a labourer because I take pride in calling myself a spinner, weaver, farmer and scavenger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-call-myself-a-labourer-because-i-take-pride-in-calling-myself-a/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [God, the Master Weaver. He stretches the yarn and intertwines the colors, the ragged twine with the velvet strings, the pains with the pleasures.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/god-the-master-weaver-he-stretches-the-yarn-and-intertwines-the/)

[Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/)

> [All of Japan once a year will get up on their rooftops, because that's the night that the shepherd boy from one side of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bly/all-of-japan-once-a-year-will-get-up-on-their-rooftops-because-that-s/)

[Robert Bly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bly/)

> [Helen Weaver’s book was a revelation to me! Although I was a young woman in the fifties, I was there, but I wasn’t there!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-cassady/helen-weaver-s-book-was-a-revelation-to-me-although-i-was-a-young/)

Carolyn Cassady

> [Our life is what we make it. An insignificant game or a noble trial; a dream or a reality; a play of the senses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-hubbel-chapin/our-life-is-what-we-make-it-an-insignificant-game-or-a-noble-trial-a/)

[Edwin Hubbel Chapin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-hubbel-chapin/)

## More by Elizabeth Gaskell

> [“Osborne and Roger knowing that the wife of the former was a Frenchwoman, and, conscious of each other's knowledge, felt doubly awkward; while Molly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/osborne-and-roger-knowing-that-the-wife-of-the-former-was-a/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [Well, He had known what love was-a sharp pang, a fierce experience, in the midst of whose flames he was struggling! but, through that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/well-he-had-known-what-love-was-a-sharp-pang-a-fierce-experience-in/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [In all disappointments sympathy is a great balm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/in-all-disappointments-sympathy-is-a-great-balm/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [But Margaret went less abroad, among machinery and men; saw less of power in its public effect, and, as it happened, she was thrown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/but-margaret-went-less-abroad-among-machinery-and-men-saw-less-of/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [“And besides, in the matter of friendship, I have observed that the disappointment here arises chiefly, not from liking our friends too well, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/and-besides-in-the-matter-of-friendship-i-have-observed-that-the/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [What other people may think of the rightness or wrongness is nothing in comparison to my own deep knowledge, my innate conviction that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/what-other-people-may-think-of-the-rightness-or-wrongness-is-nothing/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [“The first question sobbed out by his choking voice, oppressed with emotion, was-- "Where is she?" They led him to the room where his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/the-first-question-sobbed-out-by-his-choking-voice-oppressed-with/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [Wearily she went to bed, wearily she arose in four or five hours' time. But with the morning came hope, and a brighter view…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/wearily-she-went-to-bed-wearily-she-arose-in-four-or-five-hours-time/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [No one loves me, - no one cares for me, but you, mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/no-one-loves-me-no-one-cares-for-me-but-you-mother/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [I won't say she was silly, but I think one of us was silly, and it wasn't me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/i-won-t-say-she-was-silly-but-i-think-one-of-us-was-silly-and-it-wasn/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [Mr. Thorton love Margaret! Why, Margraret would never think of him, I'm sure! Such a thing has never entered her head." "Entering her heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/mr-thorton-love-margaret-why-margraret-would-never-think-of-him-i-m/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [“He never looked at her; and yet, the careful avoidance of his eyes betokened that in some way he knew exactly where, if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/he-never-looked-at-her-and-yet-the-careful-avoidance-of-his-eyes/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [“Ay! but mother's words are scarce, and weigh heavy. Father's liker me, and we talk a deal o' rubble; but mother's words are liker…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/ay-but-mother-s-words-are-scarce-and-weigh-heavy-father-s-liker-me/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [Margaret liked this smile; it was the first thing she had admired in this new friend of her father's; and the opposition of character,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/margaret-liked-this-smile-it-was-the-first-thing-she-had-admired-in/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

> [Don’t be afraid,” she said, coldly, “ as far as love may go she may be worthy of you. It must have taken a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/don-t-be-afraid-she-said-coldly-as-far-as-love-may-go-she-may-be/)

[Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

[Explore all 330 Elizabeth Gaskell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/)

## More Dear quotes

> [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/)

[Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/)

> [O lands! O all so dear to me - what you are, I become part of that, whatever it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/o-lands-o-all-so-dear-to-me-what-you-are-i-become-part-of-that/)

[Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/)

> [Dear God, I trust that no matter what happens in my life, it is for my highest good. And no matter what happens in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jeffers/dear-god-i-trust-that-no-matter-what-happens-in-my-life-it-is-for-my/)

[Susan Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jeffers/)

> [Most beautiful is the sight of those near and dear to us when our original kinship makes us of one mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epicurus/most-beautiful-is-the-sight-of-those-near-and-dear-to-us-when-our/)

[Epicurus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epicurus/)

> [Oh, dear Hazel.” Aphrodite folded her fan. “Such optimism, yet you have heartrending days ahead of you. Of course war is coming. Love and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/oh-dear-hazel-aphrodite-folded-her-fan-such-optimism-yet-you-have/)

[Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/)

> [You may be sure, dear Crito, that inaccurate language is not only in itself a mistake: it implants evil in men's souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/you-may-be-sure-dear-crito-that-inaccurate-language-is-not-only-in/)

[Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/)

> [You're thinking about something, my dear, and that makes you forget to talk. I can't tell you just now what the moral of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/you-re-thinking-about-something-my-dear-and-that-makes-you-forget-to/)

[Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/)

> [My favorite performance would definitely be "Toxic," which was my blind audition song. It was the start of it all and it was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-martinez/my-favorite-performance-would-definitely-be-toxic-which-was-my-blind/)

[Melanie Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-martinez/)

> [Dear God...thank you for bein there when no one else was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dear-god-thank-you-for-bein-there-when-no-one-else-was/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [It must be that I am dreaming, and that I shall awaken in a moment to see that awful knife descending toward my heart-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-rice-burroughs/it-must-be-that-i-am-dreaming-and-that-i-shall-awaken-in-a-moment-to/)

[Edgar Rice Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-rice-burroughs/)

> [In a library we are surrounded by many hundreds of dear friends, but they are imprisoned by an enchanter in these paper and leathern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/in-a-library-we-are-surrounded-by-many-hundreds-of-dear-friends-but/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [Dear John, tell me everything. Write it all down, that way, we’ll be with each other all the time, even if we’re not with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/dear-john-tell-me-everything-write-it-all-down-that-way-we-ll-be-with/)

[Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/)

> ['Madea' is a Southern term. It's short for 'mother dear.' So there are a lot of Madeas out there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-perry/madea-is-a-southern-term-it-s-short-for-mother-dear-so-there-are-a/)

[Tyler Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-perry/)

> [There was a man named Robert Dear who in court said he was a warrior for the babies, whose ex-wife talked about his Christian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hayes/there-was-a-man-named-robert-dear-who-in-court-said-he-was-a-warrior/)

[Chris Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hayes/)

> [Dear God, thanks for being there when no one else was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myah/dear-god-thanks-for-being-there-when-no-one-else-was/)

[Myah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/myah/)

Browse all 2,620 Dear quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Oh dear! A drunken infidel weaver! said Mr. Hale to himself.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Elizabeth Gaskell"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr-hale-to-himself/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Dear"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr-hale-to-himself/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/355/elizabeth-gaskell-894_dear_oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr_1977030.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/355/elizabeth-gaskell-894_dear_oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr_1977030.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/355/elizabeth-gaskell-894_dear_oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr_1977030.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Oh dear! A drunken infidel weaver! said Mr. Hale to himself.” — Elizabeth Gaskell",
                "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": "Elizabeth Gaskell",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Oh dear! A drunken infidel weaver!...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr-hale-to-himself/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/oh-dear-a-drunken-infidel-weaver-said-mr-hale-to-himself/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
