--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Mrs. Norris had been talking to her the…" description: "\"“Mrs. Norris had been talking to her the whole way from Northampton of her wonderful good fortune, and the extraordinary degree of gratitude and good b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26a/jane-austen-39_gratitude_mrs-norris-had-been-talking-to-her-the-w_1366827.jpg" --- # Mrs. Norris had been talking to her the whole way from… ![“Mrs. Norris had been talking to her the whole way from Northampton of her wonderful good fortune, and the extraordinary degree of gratitude and good behaviour which it ought to produce, and her consciousness of misery was therefore increased by the idea of its being a wicked thing for her not to…” quote by Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26a/jane-austen-39_gratitude_mrs-norris-had-been-talking-to-her-the-w_1366827.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26a/jane-austen-39_gratitude_mrs-norris-had-been-talking-to-her-the-w_1366827.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26a/jane-austen-39_gratitude_mrs-norris-had-been-talking-to-her-the-w_1366827.jpg) > ““Mrs. Norris had been talking to her the whole way from Northampton of her wonderful good fortune, and the extraordinary degree of gratitude and good behaviour which it ought to produce, and her consciousness of misery was therefore increased by the idea of its being a wicked thing for her not to be happy.”” [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) ## 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 feels increased misery because she believes not being happy is a moral failing, despite her good fortune. **In simple terms:** Good fortune can feel like a burden when happiness seems unattainable. Key Takeaway Recognize that happiness is not a moral duty. Themes social class gratitude self‑worth morality Mood contemplative melancholic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - wealth inheritance - marriage prospects - personal reflection Key Concepts guilt social expectation inner conflict Questions to Reflect On - Does wealth guarantee happiness? - How does societal pressure shape self‑esteem? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Gratitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gratitude/) [Guilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilt/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Misery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misery/) [Misery Increased](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misery-increased-4696162/) [Mrs Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mrs-norris-364471/) [Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/norris-475853/) [Norris Talking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/norris-talking-1286990/) [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) ## Related quotes > [“...and no other attempt made at secrecy than Mrs. Norris's talking of it everywhere as a matter not to be talked of at present.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/and-no-other-attempt-made-at-secrecy-than-mrs-norris-s-talking-of-it/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Mrs. Norris hitched a breath and went on again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/mrs-norris-hitched-a-breath-and-went-on-again/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“I take my food very seriously. Whenever I hear that bell, I know Mrs. Norris is hankerin' for some spam.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandy-ward-bell/i-take-my-food-very-seriously-whenever-i-hear-that-bell-i-know-mrs/) [Sandy Ward Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandy-ward-bell/) > [“It was some months before Sir Thomas’s consent could be received; but in the mean while, as no one felt a doubt of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-was-some-months-before-sir-thomas-s-consent-could-be-received-but/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Sir Thomas, indeed, was, by this time, not very far from classing Mrs. Norris as one of those well–meaning people who are always doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/sir-thomas-indeed-was-by-this-time-not-very-far-from-classing-mrs/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“The earliest intelligence of the travellers' safe arrival at Antigua, after a favourable voyage, was received; though not before Mrs. Norris had been indulging…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/the-earliest-intelligence-of-the-travellers-safe-arrival-at-antigua/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“There will be some difficulty in our way, Mrs. Norris,” observed Sir Thomas, “as to the distinction proper to be made between the girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/there-will-be-some-difficulty-in-our-way-mrs-norris-observed-sir/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Not even Fanny had tears for aunt Norris, not even when she was gone for ever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/not-even-fanny-had-tears-for-aunt-norris-not-even-when-she-was-gone/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Chuck Norris is the reason why Waldo went into hiding.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-gober/chuck-norris-is-the-reason-why-waldo-went-into-hiding/) [Rebecca Gober](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-gober/) > [“The only reason why world war 2 happened was because Chuck Norris decided to take a nap.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lars-anderson/the-only-reason-why-world-war-2-happened-was-because-chuck-norris/) [Lars Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lars-anderson/) > [Even little Herley, who couldn't have been more than eight, looked like he could go six rounds with Chuck Norris without breaking a sweat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/even-little-herley-who-couldn-t-have-been-more-than-eight-looked-like/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [“No One Fucks With Chuck Norris”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-oliver-reed/no-one-fucks-with-chuck-norris/) [Oliver Oliver Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-oliver-reed/) > [Me and Hermione Norris are now best friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wunmi-mosaku/me-and-hermione-norris-are-now-best-friends/) [Wunmi Mosaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wunmi-mosaku/) > [“At least, he thinks, the fellow has the wit to see what this is about: not one year's grudge or two, but a fat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/at-least-he-thinks-the-fellow-has-the-wit-to-see-what-this-is-about/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [Chuck Norris has already been to Mars; that's why there are no signs of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jokes-about-chuck-norris/chuck-norris-has-already-been-to-mars-that-s-why-there-are-no-signs/) [Jokes About Chuck Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jokes-about-chuck-norris/) ## More by Jane Austen > [Let us have the luxury of silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/let-us-have-the-luxury-of-silence/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“How earnestly did she then wish that her former opinions had been more reasonable, more moderate!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/how-earnestly-did-she-then-wish-that-her-former-opinions-had-been/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“it is very well worth-while to be tormented for two or three years of one's life, for the sake of being able to read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-is-very-well-worth-while-to-be-tormented-for-two-or-three-years-of/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [ “Everybody is taken in at some period or another. \[...\] In marriage especially. \[...\] There is not one in a hundred of either sex,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/everybody-is-taken-in-at-some-period-or-another-in-marriage/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [She knew that what Marianne and her mother conjectured one moment, they believed the next: that with them, to wish was to hope, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/she-knew-that-what-marianne-and-her-mother-conjectured-one-moment/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“…for I look upon the Frasers to be about as unhappy as most other married people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/for-i-look-upon-the-frasers-to-be-about-as-unhappy-as-most-other/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“It raises my spleen more than any thing, to have the pretence of being asked, of being given a choice, and at the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-raises-my-spleen-more-than-any-thing-to-have-the-pretence-of-being/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [her spirits wanted the solitude and silence which only numbers could give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/her-spirits-wanted-the-solitude-and-silence-which-only-numbers-could/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“But in such cases as these a good memory is unpardonable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/but-in-such-cases-as-these-a-good-memory-is-unpardonable/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“...the pleasantness of an employment does not always evince its propriety.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/the-pleasantness-of-an-employment-does-not-always-evince-its-propriety/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [Such squeamish youths as cannot bear to be connected with a little absurdity are not worth a regret.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/such-squeamish-youths-as-cannot-bear-to-be-connected-with-a-little/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“I must tell you what you will not ask, though I may wish it unsaid the next moment”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-must-tell-you-what-you-will-not-ask-though-i-may-wish-it-unsaid-the/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Lady Catherine seemed quite astonished at not receiving a direct answer; and Elizabeth suspected herself to be the first creature who had ever dared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/lady-catherine-seemed-quite-astonished-at-not-receiving-a-direct/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“He had suffered, and he had learnt to think, two advantages that he had never known before…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/he-had-suffered-and-he-had-learnt-to-think-two-advantages-that-he-had/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Vanity was the beginning and the end of Sir Walter Eliot's character; vanity of person and of situation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/vanity-was-the-beginning-and-the-end-of-sir-walter-eliot-s-character/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) [Explore all 2,013 Jane Austen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) ## More Gratitude quotes > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [“A treacherous President stood in the way; and it can be easily seen how reluctant good men might be to admit an apostasy which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/a-treacherous-president-stood-in-the-way-and-it-can-be-easily-seen/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [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/) > [We only enter into the full life if our faith gives thanks. Because how else do we accept His free gift of salvation if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/we-only-enter-into-the-full-life-if-our-faith-gives-thanks-because/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [I listen to heavy metal thanks to my son. When I argue with him on the kind of music he is listening to, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zeenat-aman/i-listen-to-heavy-metal-thanks-to-my-son-when-i-argue-with-him-on-the/) [Zeenat Aman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zeenat-aman/) > [“Thanks for teaching us to talk. Thanks for teaching us to be of the world and in the world and to make our way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-isay/thanks-for-teaching-us-to-talk-thanks-for-teaching-us-to-be-of-the/) [Dave Isay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-isay/) > [Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/wine-is-one-of-the-most-civilized-things-in-the-world-and-one-of-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [I want to thank each and every one of you for having extinguished yourselves this session.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gib-lewis/i-want-to-thank-each-and-every-one-of-you-for-having-extinguished/) [Gib Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gib-lewis/) > [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [Be in a state of gratitude for everything that shows up in your life. 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