--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Somehow, it was hotter then: a black dog…" description: "\"“Somehow, it was hotter then: a black dog suffered on a summer's day; bony mules hitched to Hoover carts flicked flies in the sweltering shade of the l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6bd/harper-lee-451_flower_somehow-it-was-hotter-then-a-black-dog-s_1969633.jpg" --- # Somehow, it was hotter then: a black dog suffered on a… ![“Somehow, it was hotter then: a black dog suffered on a summer's day; bony mules hitched to Hoover carts flicked flies in the sweltering shade of the live oaks on the square. Men's stiff collars wilted by nine in the morning. Ladies bathed before noon, after their three o'clock naps, and by…” quote by Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6bd/harper-lee-451_flower_somehow-it-was-hotter-then-a-black-dog-s_1969633.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6bd/harper-lee-451_flower_somehow-it-was-hotter-then-a-black-dog-s_1969633.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6bd/harper-lee-451_flower_somehow-it-was-hotter-then-a-black-dog-s_1969633.jpg) > ““Somehow, it was hotter then: a black dog suffered on a summer's day; bony mules hitched to Hoover carts flicked flies in the sweltering shade of the live oaks on the square. Men's stiff collars wilted by nine in the morning. Ladies bathed before noon, after their three o'clock naps, and by nightfall were like soft teacakes with frostings of sweat and sweet talcum.”” [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage paints a vivid, oppressive summer scene, describing how heat affects people’s attire, behavior, and environment, highlighting social norms and physical discomfort. **In simple terms:** Summer heat makes people uncomfortable and changes behavior. Key Takeaway Notice how environment shapes social habits. Themes social observation environment human behavior Mood observational descriptive Type literary descriptive When to use this quote - urban summer life - historical setting - daily routines Key Concepts heat social norms comfort Questions to Reflect On - How does extreme weather influence social customs? - What does this description reveal about gender roles of the time? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bathed Noon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bathed-noon-2254300/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning/) [Suffered Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffered-summer-3299498/) [Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/summer/) [Summer Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/summer-day/) [Sweltering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweltering-459940/) [Sweltering Shade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweltering-shade-3299499/) ## Related quotes > [Ladies bathed before noon, after their three o'clock naps, and by nightfall were like soft teacakes with frostings of sweat and sweet talcum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/ladies-bathed-before-noon-after-their-three-o-clock-naps-and-by/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [“The edge of the whirl was represented by a broad belt of gleaming spray; but no particle of this slipped into the mouth of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/the-edge-of-the-whirl-was-represented-by-a-broad-belt-of-gleaming/) [Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/) > [“It was one of those sweltering summer days in which the air itself seems to decline as a haze suffocates the outside world. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moonshine-noire/it-was-one-of-those-sweltering-summer-days-in-which-the-air-itself/) [Moonshine Noire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moonshine-noire/) > [“Self-pity was like wearing a wool jacket in the sweltering heat, and I wanted it gone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-higgins/self-pity-was-like-wearing-a-wool-jacket-in-the-sweltering-heat-and-i/) [Wendy Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-higgins/) > [“Let a sweltering heat... love... rose up relentlessly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sooyeon-won/let-a-sweltering-heat-love-rose-up-relentlessly/) [Sooyeon Won](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sooyeon-won/) > [“It’s midnight, it’s sweltering, and I might be high on Vicodin, but that guy - that guy right over there - that’s him. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-perkins/it-s-midnight-it-s-sweltering-and-i-might-be-high-on-vicodin-but-that/) [Stephanie Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-perkins/) > [All labours draw hame at even, And can to others say, "Thanks to the gracious God of heaven, Whilk sent this summer day."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hume/all-labours-draw-hame-at-even-and-can-to-others-say-thanks-to-the/) [Alexander Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hume/) > [“Alex, a mid-adolescent boy, was out for a walk one summer's day.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-fox/alex-a-mid-adolescent-boy-was-out-for-a-walk-one-summer-s-day/) [Kyle Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-fox/) > [“Another day the ladybugs arrive. Thousands of them, soaking up the sun on the back door. 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Kunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-m-kunin/) > [The opening and the folding flowers, that laugh to the summer's day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicia-hemans/the-opening-and-the-folding-flowers-that-laugh-to-the-summer-s-day/) [Felicia Hemans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicia-hemans/) > [“The best horror novels open up, "It was beautiful summer day and the smell of flowers emanated throughout the air.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-alcala/the-best-horror-novels-open-up-it-was-beautiful-summer-day-and-the/) [Justin Alcala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-alcala/) > [The feeling you give me is better than a cool running AC on a hot summer day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-diaz/the-feeling-you-give-me-is-better-than-a-cool-running-ac-on-a-hot/) [Ashley Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-diaz/) ## More by Harper Lee > [“No jury in this part of the world's going to say, "We think you're guilty, but not very," on a charge like that. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/no-jury-in-this-part-of-the-world-s-going-to-say-we-think-you-re/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [That proves something- that a gang of wild animals can be stopped, simply because they're still human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/that-proves-something-that-a-gang-of-wild-animals-can-be-stopped/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [“I wanted you to see something about her—I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/i-wanted-you-to-see-something-about-her-i-wanted-you-to-see-what-real/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [Any writer worth his salt writes to please himself...It's a self-exploratory operation that is endless. 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WHen he settle back his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/naw-jem-i-think-that-there-is-just-one-kind-of-folks-folks-jen-turned/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [“The course of English Literature would have been decidedly different had Mr. Wordsworth owned a power mower.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/the-course-of-english-literature-would-have-been-decidedly-different/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [I would like to be the chronicler of something that I think is going down the drain very swiftly, and that is small-town, middle-class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/i-would-like-to-be-the-chronicler-of-something-that-i-think-is-going/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [“The gum looked fresh. I sniffed it and it smelled all right. I licked it and waited for a while. 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