--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: George Smiley: [quoting an old letter…" description: "\"George Smiley: [quoting an old letter from Bill Haydon about Jim Prideaux] He has that heavy quiet that commands. He's my other half. Between us we'd m..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/john-le-carre-651_bills_george-smiley-quoting-an-old-letter-from_1812849.jpg" --- # George Smiley: \[quoting an old letter from Bill Haydon… ![“George Smiley: [quoting an old letter from Bill Haydon about Jim Prideaux] He has that heavy quiet that commands. He's my other half. Between us we'd make one marvelous man. He asks nothing better than to be in my company or that of my wicked, divine friends, and I'm vastly tickled by the…” quote by John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/john-le-carre-651_bills_george-smiley-quoting-an-old-letter-from_1812849.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/john-le-carre-651_bills_george-smiley-quoting-an-old-letter-from_1812849.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/john-le-carre-651_bills_george-smiley-quoting-an-old-letter-from_1812849.jpg) > “George Smiley: \[quoting an old letter from Bill Haydon about Jim Prideaux\] He has that heavy quiet that commands. He's my other half. Between us we'd make one marvelous man. He asks nothing better than to be in my company or that of my wicked, divine friends, and I'm vastly tickled by the compliment. He's virgin, about eight foot tall, and built by the same firm that did Stonehenge” [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) ## 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 is described as a towering, quiet presence, embodying strength and companionship. **In simple terms:** Describes a strong, quiet companion. Key Takeaway Appreciate quiet strength. Themes friendship character loyalty identity Mood introspective analytical Type literature character When to use this quote - spy novels - character analysis - team dynamics Key Concepts psychology literature identity Questions to Reflect On - What does “virgin” imply here? - How does physical description affect perception? A Different Perspective Quiet strength may mask inner conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bills/) [Command](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/command/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Compliment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compliment/) [Compliment Virgin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compliment-virgin-2130495/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) [Eight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eight/) [Feet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feet/) [Firm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firm/) [Half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/half/) [Heavy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heavy/) [Letters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/letters/) [Marvelous Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marvelous-man-1744031/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Other half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/other-half/) [Quiet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quiet/) [Quoting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quoting/) [Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smiley/) [Smiley Quoting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smiley-quoting-2130497/) [Stonehenge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stonehenge/) [Tickled Compliment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tickled-compliment-2130496/) [Virgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virgins/) [Wicked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wicked/) ## Related quotes > [I think I did marry a marvelous man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-edwards/i-think-i-did-marry-a-marvelous-man/) [Elizabeth Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-edwards/) > [“For, indeed, everything about is marvelous, and wherever a man turns his gaze he sees the Godhead of the Word and is smitten with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/athanasius-of-alexandria/for-indeed-everything-about-is-marvelous-and-wherever-a-man-turns-his/) [Athanasius of Alexandria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/athanasius-of-alexandria/) > [ \[On John Tunnard:\] One day a marvelous man in a highly elaborate tweed coat walked into the gallery. He looked a little like Groucho… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-guggenheim/on-john-tunnard-one-day-a-marvelous-man-in-a-highly-elaborate-tweed/) [Peggy Guggenheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-guggenheim/) > [I have a theory which I suspect is rather immoral,' Smiley went on, more lightly. 'Each of us has only a quantum of compassion.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/i-have-a-theory-which-i-suspect-is-rather-immoral-smiley-went-on-more/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [Smiley was soaked to the skin and God as a punishment had removed all taxis from the face of London.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/smiley-was-soaked-to-the-skin-and-god-as-a-punishment-had-removed-all/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [The creation of George Smiley, the retired spy recalled to hunt for just such a high-ranking mole in 'Tinker, Tailor,' was extremely personal. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/the-creation-of-george-smiley-the-retired-spy-recalled-to-hunt-for/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [Treason is very much a matter of habit, Smiley decided.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/treason-is-very-much-a-matter-of-habit-smiley-decided/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [You can't really dust for vomit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-guest/you-can-t-really-dust-for-vomit/) [Christopher Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-guest/) > [All inquiry into antiquity, all curiosity respecting the Pyramids, the excavated cities, Stonehenge, the Ohio Circles, Mexico, Memphis,--is the desire to do away this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/all-inquiry-into-antiquity-all-curiosity-respecting-the-pyramids-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“‎Whoever was the person behind Stonehenge was one dickens of a motivator, I'll tell you that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/whoever-was-the-person-behind-stonehenge-was-one-dickens-of-a/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Perhaps these ancient observatories like Stonehenge perennially impress modern people because modern people have no idea how the Sun, Moon, or stars move. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/perhaps-these-ancient-observatories-like-stonehenge-perennially/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [ There \[is\] a feeling of recognition, as of meeting an old friend, which comes to us all in the face of great artistic experiences.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-vaughan-williams/there-is-a-feeling-of-recognition-as-of-meeting-an-old-friend-which/) [Ralph Vaughan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-vaughan-williams/) > [Stonehenge had an aura but it was also just stone. Then in the sixties, it became a great hedonistic, hippie, druid, rock-n-roll party site.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandra-mir/stonehenge-had-an-aura-but-it-was-also-just-stone-then-in-the-sixties/) [Aleksandra Mir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandra-mir/) > [“It was through this viewer that he got his first reply from Tralfamadore. The reply was written on Earth in huge stones on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/it-was-through-this-viewer-that-he-got-his-first-reply-from/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [The Golden Arches of McDonald's rise, glorious across the landscape, contempo-monolithic, simple in concept as Stonehenge if we could but see it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-howard/the-golden-arches-of-mcdonald-s-rise-glorious-across-the-landscape/) [Maureen Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-howard/) ## More by John le Carre > [The creation of George Smiley, the retired spy recalled to hunt for just such a high-ranking mole in 'Tinker, Tailor,' was extremely personal. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/the-creation-of-george-smiley-the-retired-spy-recalled-to-hunt-for/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [All power corrupts but some must govern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/all-power-corrupts-but-some-must-govern/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [During the Cold War, we lived in coded times when it wasn't easy and there were shades of grey and ambiguity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/during-the-cold-war-we-lived-in-coded-times-when-it-wasn-t-easy-and/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [“You're history, Donohue. You think countries run the fucking world! Go back to fucking Sunday school. 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They're the whores and angels of our striving selves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/ideologies-have-no-heart-of-their-own-they-re-the-whores-and-angels/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [Home's where you go when you run out of homes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/home-s-where-you-go-when-you-run-out-of-homes/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [“Pain observed is journalistic pain. It's diplomatic pain. It's television pain, over as soon as you switch off your beastly set.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/pain-observed-is-journalistic-pain-it-s-diplomatic-pain-it-s/) [John le Carré](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [The greatest threat to mankind comes from the renunciation of individual scruple in favor of institutional denominators. . . . 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Over her mother’s shoulder, stilling her pains and her injured pride, Jackie Lacon watched the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/middle-children-weep-longer-than-their-brothers-and-sisters-over-her/) [John le Carré](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [For decades to come the spy world will continue to be the collective couch where the subconscious of each nation is confessed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/for-decades-to-come-the-spy-world-will-continue-to-be-the-collective/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [I happen to write by hand. I don't even type. 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He will correct your vision. Others will drive on the road he built.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/bill-hicks-blowtorch-excavator-truthsayer-and-brain-specialist-he/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) [Browse all 2,663 Bills quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bills/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "George Smiley: [quoting an old letter from Bill Haydon about Jim Prideaux] He has that heavy quiet that commands. He's my other half. Between us we'd make one marvelous man. He asks nothing better than to be in my company or that of my wicked, divine friends, and I'm vastly tickled by the compliment. 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