--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But hidden drawers, lockable diaries and…" description: "\"“But hidden drawers, lockable diaries and cryptographic systems could not conceal from Briony the simple truth: she had no secrets. Her wish for a harm..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/ian-mcewan-494_hidden_but-hidden-drawers-lockable-diaries-and_1876190.jpg" --- # But hidden drawers, lockable diaries and cryptographic… ![“But hidden drawers, lockable diaries and cryptographic systems could not conceal from Briony the simple truth: she had no secrets. Her wish for a harmonious, organised world denied her the reckless possibilities of wrongdoing. Mayhem and destruction were too chaotic for her tastes, and she did not…” quote by Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/ian-mcewan-494_hidden_but-hidden-drawers-lockable-diaries-and_1876190.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/ian-mcewan-494_hidden_but-hidden-drawers-lockable-diaries-and_1876190.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/ian-mcewan-494_hidden_but-hidden-drawers-lockable-diaries-and_1876190.jpg) > ““But hidden drawers, lockable diaries and cryptographic systems could not conceal from Briony the simple truth: she had no secrets. Her wish for a harmonious, organised world denied her the reckless possibilities of wrongdoing. Mayhem and destruction were too chaotic for her tastes, and she did not have it in her to be cruel. Her effective status as an only child, as well as the relative isolation of the Tallis house, kept her, at least during the long summer holidays, from girlish intrigues with friends. Nothing in her life was sufficiently interesting or shameful to merit hiding; no one knew about the squirrel's skull beneath her bed, but no one wanted to know.”” [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A character’s desire for order suppresses curiosity and moral ambiguity, leading to a life lacking depth and hidden truths. **In simple terms:** Seeking perfect order can hide real complexities. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty and complexity. Themes order secrecy curiosity personal growth Mood introspective melancholic thoughtful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing - self‑reflection - relationship building - creative problem solving Key Concepts psychology ethical dilemma character development Questions to Reflect On - How does your need for control limit you? - What value lies in embracing chaos? A Different Perspective Over‑control may stifle creativity and authentic experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Secrets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secrets/) [Simple truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simple-truth/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [No one knew about the squirrel’s skull beneath her bed, but no one wanted to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/no-one-knew-about-the-squirrel-s-skull-beneath-her-bed-but-no-one/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [No one knew about the squirrel’s skull beneath Briony bed, but no one wanted to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/no-one-knew-about-the-squirrel-s-skull-beneath-briony-bed-but-no-one/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“You are a lamp to give light to people; you must mount the lamp stand and shine bright! Don't hide your gifts; expose and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/you-are-a-lamp-to-give-light-to-people-you-must-mount-the-lamp-stand/) [israelmore ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [“You are like a global market. You can't hide yourself from global customers! Make a global exposure of your dreams and you will achieve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/you-are-like-a-global-market-you-can-t-hide-yourself-from-global/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [“No secret can remain hidden for ever. Silently and patiently, it waits in the dark. It lets you build your life, carefully stacking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefanos-livos/no-secret-can-remain-hidden-for-ever-silently-and-patiently-it-waits/) [Stefanos Livos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefanos-livos/) > [“I was beginning to agree with the thesis that some truths were better off dead. And buried.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simona-panova/i-was-beginning-to-agree-with-the-thesis-that-some-truths-were-better/) [Simona Panova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simona-panova/) > [What dark secrets do you keep hidden from the world? Where would you go if no one could find you? What would you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-dark-secrets-do-you-keep-hidden-from-the-world-where-would-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm a firm believer that the world should be your oyster when you're cooking. People should open themselves to other cuisines - there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yotam-ottolenghi/i-m-a-firm-believer-that-the-world-should-be-your-oyster-when-you-re/) [Yotam Ottolenghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yotam-ottolenghi/) > [Everything we see hides another thing, we always want to see what is hidden by what we see, but it is impossible. Humans hide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rene-magritte/everything-we-see-hides-another-thing-we-always-want-to-see-what-is/) [Rene Magritte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rene-magritte/) > [“Life, like love, holds many secrets for us to discover. Some we unearth early on. Others take us most of our days to stumble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-l-pickering-jr/life-like-love-holds-many-secrets-for-us-to-discover-some-we-unearth/) [Roy L. Pickering Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-l-pickering-jr/) > [Sometimes the ones who seem the most holy in public are the ones hiding the most dirty of secrets behind closed doors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sashauni-aaeliyae/sometimes-the-ones-who-seem-the-most-holy-in-public-are-the-ones/) Sashauni Aaeliyae > [Gender is a way to hide from the simple truth we all tell: 'Hey, I'm here, I have a body.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-griffin/gender-is-a-way-to-hide-from-the-simple-truth-we-all-tell-hey-i-m/) [Susan Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-griffin/) > [The simple truth is that every veteran has his or her own unique story, and there's no single narrative about the issue of veterans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-engelbert/the-simple-truth-is-that-every-veteran-has-his-or-her-own-unique/) [Cathy Engelbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-engelbert/) > [Theorems often tell us complex truths about the simple things, but only rarely tell us simple truths about the complex ones. To believe otherwise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/theorems-often-tell-us-complex-truths-about-the-simple-things-but/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [I have never heard enough classical music to be able to enjoy it; & the simple truth is, I detest it. Not mildly, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-have-never-heard-enough-classical-music-to-be-able-to-enjoy-it-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) ## More by Ian McEwan > [“As you will see, we do not believe that artists have an obligation to strike up attitudes to the war. Indeed, they are wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/as-you-will-see-we-do-not-believe-that-artists-have-an-obligation-to/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [You could say that all novels are spy novels and all novelists are spy masters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/you-could-say-that-all-novels-are-spy-novels-and-all-novelists-are/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I've never had a moment's doubt. I love you. I believe in you completely. You are my dearest one. My reason for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-ve-never-had-a-moment-s-doubt-i-love-you-i-believe-in-you/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“It is shaming sometimes, how the body will not, or cannot, lie about emotions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/it-is-shaming-sometimes-how-the-body-will-not-or-cannot-lie-about/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“While my friends struggled and calculated, I reached a solution by a set of floating steps that were partly visual, partly just a feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/while-my-friends-struggled-and-calculated-i-reached-a-solution-by-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Once, on a walk by a river- Eskdale in low reddish sunlight, with a dusting of snow- his daughter quoted to him an opening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/once-on-a-walk-by-a-river-eskdale-in-low-reddish-sunlight-with-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Perhaps it's one of those cases of a microcosm giving you the whole world. Like a spode dinner plate. Or a single cell. Or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/perhaps-it-s-one-of-those-cases-of-a-microcosm-giving-you-the-whole/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [Who you get, and how it works out- there's so much luck involved, as well as the million branching consequences of your conscious choice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/who-you-get-and-how-it-works-out-there-s-so-much-luck-involved-as/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“On Chesil Beach he could have called out to Florence, he could have gone after her. He did not know, or would not have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/on-chesil-beach-he-could-have-called-out-to-florence-he-could-have/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [It was always the view of my parents...that hot weather encouraged loose morals among young people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/it-was-always-the-view-of-my-parents-that-hot-weather-encouraged/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I apologize for being obvious, but every time I watch the curtain come down on even a halfway decent production of a Shakespeare play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-apologize-for-being-obvious-but-every-time-i-watch-the-curtain-come/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I would rather be physically disabled obviously than mentally. I would rather be paraplegic than nuts. And it is a terrifying prospect and actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-would-rather-be-physically-disabled-obviously-than-mentally-i-would/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Words, as I'm beginning to appreciate, can make things true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/words-as-i-m-beginning-to-appreciate-can-make-things-true/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I couldn't think about novels at all. It seemed the only writing that was appropriate to that horrendous event was journalism, reportage. And, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-couldn-t-think-about-novels-at-all-it-seemed-the-only-writing-that/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I did not kill my father, but I sometimes felt I had helped him on his way. And but for the fact that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-did-not-kill-my-father-but-i-sometimes-felt-i-had-helped-him-on-his/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) [Explore all 496 Ian McEwan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## More Hidden quotes > [I can look around a room and tell you if there are hidden cameras or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-ash/i-can-look-around-a-room-and-tell-you-if-there-are-hidden-cameras-or/) [Lauren Ash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-ash/) > [The hidden child wants to be able to participate and to co-create in art, rather than being simply an admiring viewer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-morgenstern/the-hidden-child-wants-to-be-able-to-participate-and-to-co-create-in/) [Christian Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-morgenstern/) > [Everyone tries to decipher what I write as if there's a hidden message and I'm like, 'There's no hidden message.' I don't even put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camila-morrone/everyone-tries-to-decipher-what-i-write-as-if-there-s-a-hidden/) [Camila Morrone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camila-morrone/) > [Don't all writers have a hidden nerve, call it a secret chamber, something irreducibly theirs, which stirs their prose and makes it tick and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-aciman/don-t-all-writers-have-a-hidden-nerve-call-it-a-secret-chamber/) [Andre Aciman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-aciman/) > [“He never saw these dresses, was not the least aware of their presence under the manteau, but she insisted on wearing them. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sahar-delijani/he-never-saw-these-dresses-was-not-the-least-aware-of-their-presence/) [Sahar Delijani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sahar-delijani/) > [Water, stories, the body, all the things we do, are mediums that hid and show what's hidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/water-stories-the-body-all-the-things-we-do-are-mediums-that-hid-and/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [“Life, like love, holds many secrets for us to discover. Some we unearth early on. Others take us most of our days to stumble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-l-pickering-jr/life-like-love-holds-many-secrets-for-us-to-discover-some-we-unearth/) [Roy L. Pickering Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-l-pickering-jr/) > [We all have scars. Just because mine are hidden doesnt make them any less painful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknon/we-all-have-scars-just-because-mine-are-hidden-doesnt-make-them-any/) Unknon > [Wearing this mask, you look at my face and see a smile but underneath is sorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristina-fedolfi/wearing-this-mask-you-look-at-my-face-and-see-a-smile-but-underneath/) Kristina Fedolfi > [We live in all we seek. The hidden shows up in too-plain sight. It lives captive on the face of the obvious - the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/we-live-in-all-we-seek-the-hidden-shows-up-in-too-plain-sight-it/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [I've never hidden my sexuality from anyone - my whole life, in fact - and I've been waiting for someone to ask about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristian-nairn/i-ve-never-hidden-my-sexuality-from-anyone-my-whole-life-in-fact-and/) [Kristian Nairn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristian-nairn/) > [Hypocrisy is a detriment to progress. There's always a hidden agenda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-flynt/hypocrisy-is-a-detriment-to-progress-there-s-always-a-hidden-agenda/) [Larry Flynt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-flynt/) > [First, there is the bare beauty of the logs themselves with their long lines and firm curves. Then there is the open charm felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustav-stickley/first-there-is-the-bare-beauty-of-the-logs-themselves-with-their-long/) [Gustav Stickley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustav-stickley/) > [Better to have an open enemy, than hidden friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/better-to-have-an-open-enemy-than-hidden-friends/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [“There is a hidden power in details”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabeesh-yemmay/there-is-a-hidden-power-in-details/) Sabeesh Yemmay Browse all 839 Hidden quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“But hidden drawers, lockable diaries and cryptographic systems could not conceal from Briony the simple truth: she had no secrets. Her wish for a harmonious, organised world denied her the reckless possibilities of wrongdoing. 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