--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Lockwood sat up awkwardly, adjusting his…" description: "\"“Lockwood sat up awkwardly, adjusting his Bubble-Wrapped loops of chain. 'We're in good shape,' he said. 'We've lost the heavy duty chains and the stuf..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/jonathan-stroud-3021_ghosts_lockwood-sat-up-awkwardly-adjusting-his_1494001.png" --- # Lockwood sat up awkwardly, adjusting his Bubble-Wrapped… ![“Lockwood sat up awkwardly, adjusting his Bubble-Wrapped loops of chain. 'We're in good shape,' he said. 'We've lost the heavy duty chains and the stuff in the bags, but we've got our rapiers, iron, and silver seals. And we've found what we wanted now.' I stared at the clean, calm surface of the…” quote by Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/jonathan-stroud-3021_ghosts_lockwood-sat-up-awkwardly-adjusting-his_1494001.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/jonathan-stroud-3021_ghosts_lockwood-sat-up-awkwardly-adjusting-his_1494001.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/jonathan-stroud-3021_ghosts_lockwood-sat-up-awkwardly-adjusting-his_1494001.png) > ““Lockwood sat up awkwardly, adjusting his Bubble-Wrapped loops of chain. 'We're in good shape,' he said. 'We've lost the heavy duty chains and the stuff in the bags, but we've got our rapiers, iron, and silver seals. And we've found what we wanted now.' I stared at the clean, calm surface of the door. 'Why couldn't it come after us? Ghosts can pass through walls.' Lockwood shrugged. 'In some cases a Visitor is tied so completely to the room where it met its death that it no longer has any conception of there being any adjacent space at all. So...when we left its hunting ground, it was as if we ceased to exist, as if we ceased to be…' I looked at him. 'You haven't really got a clue, have you?' 'No.”” [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) ## 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 explains that a ghost is bound to its death site, unable to perceive spaces beyond, highlighting limits of perception and control. **In simple terms:** Ghosts are stuck where they died and can’t see beyond that. Key Takeaway Recognize when unseen constraints shape reality. Themes perception supernatural limitations control death Mood eerie thoughtful tense Type literary dialogue explanatory When to use this quote - Haunted house investigation - ghost hunting - character dialogue - worldbuilding - story tension Key Concepts Boundaries existential confinement spiritual physics Questions to Reflect On - How do unseen limits affect our decisions? - What does “ceasing to exist” imply for identity? A Different Perspective The explanation may oversimplify complex supernatural lore. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ghosts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ghosts/) ## Related quotes > [In the beginning we were a group of nine. Three are gone, dead. There are six of us left. They are hunting us, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pittacus-lore/in-the-beginning-we-were-a-group-of-nine-three-are-gone-dead-there/) [Pittacus Lore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pittacus-lore/) > [“I finally managed to open the door, but couldn’t raise my head, didn’t have the strength to look up. At least the banging had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/i-finally-managed-to-open-the-door-but-couldn-t-raise-my-head-didn-t/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I once missed an appointment because I left my house, I locked the door. And then I thought, like anybody else, you know, 'I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howie-mandel/i-once-missed-an-appointment-because-i-left-my-house-i-locked-the/) [Howie Mandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howie-mandel/) > [...because he had been waiting for someone to come back to him, so every time someone knocked on the door, he couldn't stop himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/because-he-had-been-waiting-for-someone-to-come-back-to-him-so-every/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [“When you go out hunting wicked spirits, it's the simple things that matter most. The silvered point of your rapier flashing in the dark;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/when-you-go-out-hunting-wicked-spirits-it-s-the-simple-things-that/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [“This is what the Problem means,” he went on. “This is the effect it has. Lives lost, loved ones taken before their time. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/this-is-what-the-problem-means-he-went-on-this-is-the-effect-it-has/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [Many memories were long forgotten, and many became ghosts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blackmore-s-night/many-memories-were-long-forgotten-and-many-became-ghosts/) Blackmore's Night > [“I am made of a thousand ghosts. Only you can shoot me down.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-james/i-am-made-of-a-thousand-ghosts-only-you-can-shoot-me-down/) Bella James > [“A memory that costs you something," he said aloud, almost to himself. "One that hurts to remember. That makes you regret what you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daria-lavelle/a-memory-that-costs-you-something-he-said-aloud-almost-to-himself-one/) Daria Lavelle > [“Most people would probably call me a ghost. I am, after all, dead. But I don't think of myself that way. It wasn't so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-pike/most-people-would-probably-call-me-a-ghost-i-am-after-all-dead-but-i/) [Christopher Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-pike/) > [“All right, you deadly little ghostlings,” I muttered. “Mama says go back to bed! - Cat”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeaniene-frost/all-right-you-deadly-little-ghostlings-i-muttered-mama-says-go-back/) [Jeaniene Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeaniene-frost/) > [“One person's strange is another person's normal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-harper/one-person-s-strange-is-another-person-s-normal/) [Dani Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-harper/) > [Nice is a city of ghosts and specters, but I hope not to become one of them right away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-modiano/nice-is-a-city-of-ghosts-and-specters-but-i-hope-not-to-become-one-of/) [Patrick Modiano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-modiano/) > [“This was going to be worse than the time I table danced in the diner in high school!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bryson/this-was-going-to-be-worse-than-the-time-i-table-danced-in-the-diner/) [Kathy Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bryson/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) ## More by Jonathan Stroud > [“Let's have the baddish one first,' George said. 'I prefer my misery to come at me in stages, so I can acclimatize on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/let-s-have-the-baddish-one-first-george-said-i-prefer-my-misery-to/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [Ambition is all very well, my lad, but you must cloak it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/ambition-is-all-very-well-my-lad-but-you-must-cloak-it/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [“You think so?" The boy looked down at his cross-legged form. He was sitting straight-backed, legs folded neatly in the manner of an Egyptian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/you-think-so-the-boy-looked-down-at-his-cross-legged-form-he-was/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [“This is what the Problem means,” he went on. “This is the effect it has. Lives lost, loved ones taken before their time. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/this-is-what-the-problem-means-he-went-on-this-is-the-effect-it-has/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [That did it. I'd gone through a lot in the past few days. Everyone I met seemed to want a piece of me: djinn,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/that-did-it-i-d-gone-through-a-lot-in-the-past-few-days-everyone-i/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [The afrit batted his eyelashes with a ostentatious lack of concern. "Indeed? Have you a name?" "A name?" I cried. "I have MANY names!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/the-afrit-batted-his-eyelashes-with-a-ostentatious-lack-of-concern/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [“Do you remember,” George went on, “what we found in the tunnels beneath Aickmere’s? Aside from a massive pile of human bones.” “I found”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/do-you-remember-george-went-on-what-we-found-in-the-tunnels-beneath/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [The bristling eyebrows shot up in mock surprise. Mesmerized. the boy watched them disappear under the hanging white thatch of hair. There, almost coyly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/the-bristling-eyebrows-shot-up-in-mock-surprise-mesmerized-the-boy/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [“John Mandrake was an attractive young man, and the scent of power hung about him, sweet and intoxicating, like honeysuckle in the evening air.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/john-mandrake-was-an-attractive-young-man-and-the-scent-of-power-hung/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [“George,' I croaked, 'are you okay?' 'No. Someone's buttocks are flattening my foot.' I shifted my position irritably.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/george-i-croaked-are-you-okay-no-someone-s-buttocks-are-flattening-my/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [We grow up being told about great figures in our society, and as you get older you have to question the stories you've been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/we-grow-up-being-told-about-great-figures-in-our-society-and-as-you/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [Jabor finally appeared at the top of the stairs, sparks of flame radiating from his body and igniting the fabric of the house around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/jabor-finally-appeared-at-the-top-of-the-stairs-sparks-of-flame/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [“But certainly the two best-known tales in the neighborhood - the key hauntings, if you will - concern the Red Room and the Screaming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/but-certainly-the-two-best-known-tales-in-the-neighborhood-the-key/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [“Lockwood stepped aside, his boots crunching across the salt, to stand and study the paper beneath the light. No such luck with George; he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/lockwood-stepped-aside-his-boots-crunching-across-the-salt-to-stand/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) > [“Water, running - It was observed in ancient times that ghosts dislike crossing running water. In modern Britain this knowledge is sometimes used against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-stroud/water-running-it-was-observed-in-ancient-times-that-ghosts-dislike/) [Jonathan Stroud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) [Explore all 137 Jonathan Stroud quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-stroud/) ## More Ghosts quotes > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [“This was going to be worse than the time I table danced in the diner in high school!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bryson/this-was-going-to-be-worse-than-the-time-i-table-danced-in-the-diner/) [Kathy Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bryson/) > [Nice is a city of ghosts and specters, but I hope not to become one of them right away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-modiano/nice-is-a-city-of-ghosts-and-specters-but-i-hope-not-to-become-one-of/) [Patrick Modiano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-modiano/) > [“One person's strange is another person's normal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-harper/one-person-s-strange-is-another-person-s-normal/) [Dani Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-harper/) > [“All right, you deadly little ghostlings,” I muttered. “Mama says go back to bed! - Cat”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeaniene-frost/all-right-you-deadly-little-ghostlings-i-muttered-mama-says-go-back/) [Jeaniene Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeaniene-frost/) > [“Most people would probably call me a ghost. I am, after all, dead. But I don't think of myself that way. It wasn't so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-pike/most-people-would-probably-call-me-a-ghost-i-am-after-all-dead-but-i/) [Christopher Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-pike/) > [“A memory that costs you something," he said aloud, almost to himself. "One that hurts to remember. That makes you regret what you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daria-lavelle/a-memory-that-costs-you-something-he-said-aloud-almost-to-himself-one/) Daria Lavelle > [“I am made of a thousand ghosts. Only you can shoot me down.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-james/i-am-made-of-a-thousand-ghosts-only-you-can-shoot-me-down/) Bella James > [Many memories were long forgotten, and many became ghosts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blackmore-s-night/many-memories-were-long-forgotten-and-many-became-ghosts/) Blackmore's Night > [Do I believe in ghosts?...I am prepared to consider evidence and accept it if it satisfies me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-james/do-i-believe-in-ghosts-i-am-prepared-to-consider-evidence-and-accept/) [M. R. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-r-james/) > [“Before her escort could react, she sprinted out from their little pool of lantern-light into the darkness, her feet pounding the soft, treacherous clods…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hardinge/before-her-escort-could-react-she-sprinted-out-from-their-little-pool/) [Frances Hardinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hardinge/) > [“I assure you; while I look like a ghost, I'm no spirit or demon. I'm nothing but a girl struggling to make her way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leanna-renee-hieber/i-assure-you-while-i-look-like-a-ghost-i-m-no-spirit-or-demon-i-m/) [Leanna Renee Hieber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leanna-renee-hieber/) > [They call them the haunted shores, these stretches of Devonshire and Cornwall and Ireland which rear up against the westward ocean. Mists gather here,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dodie-smith/they-call-them-the-haunted-shores-these-stretches-of-devonshire-and/) [Dodie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dodie-smith/) > [I think I do believe in the afterlife; I have heard stories from people who I can completely trust that have seen ghosts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saoirse-ronan/i-think-i-do-believe-in-the-afterlife-i-have-heard-stories-from/) [Saoirse Ronan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saoirse-ronan/) > [“The banana flavour of his accidental conception, and the banana theme of his accidental death, now all seemed to conspire against him and rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-conrad/the-banana-flavour-of-his-accidental-conception-and-the-banana-theme/) [Tom Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-conrad/) [Browse all 1,103 Ghosts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ghosts/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Lockwood sat up awkwardly, adjusting his Bubble-Wrapped loops of chain. 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