--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Two adolescent girls on a hot summer…" description: "\"“Two adolescent girls on a hot summer night--hardly the material of great literature, which tends to endow all male experience (that of those twin brot..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/685/kathryn-davis-33597_hot-summer_two-adolescent-girls-on-a-hot-summer-nig_1667508.jpg" --- # Two adolescent girls on a hot summer night--hardly the… ![“Two adolescent girls on a hot summer night--hardly the material of great literature, which tends to endow all male experience (that of those twin brothers who found themselves adrift so many years ago in the dark northern woods for instance) with universal radiance. Faithless sons, wars and…” quote by Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/685/kathryn-davis-33597_hot-summer_two-adolescent-girls-on-a-hot-summer-nig_1667508.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/685/kathryn-davis-33597_hot-summer_two-adolescent-girls-on-a-hot-summer-nig_1667508.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/685/kathryn-davis-33597_hot-summer_two-adolescent-girls-on-a-hot-summer-nig_1667508.jpg) > ““Two adolescent girls on a hot summer night--hardly the material of great literature, which tends to endow all male experience (that of those twin brothers who found themselves adrift so many years ago in the dark northern woods for instance) with universal radiance. Faithless sons, wars and typhoons, fields of blood, greed and knives: our literature's full of such stories. And yet suppose for an instant that it wasn't the complacent father but his bored daughter who was the Prime Mover; suppose that what came first wasn't an appetite for drama but the urge to awaken it. Mightn't we then permit a single summer in the lives of two bored girls to represent an essential stage in the history of the universe?”” [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A speculative reflection on how seemingly trivial experiences of young women could be pivotal in shaping universal narratives, challenging traditional literary focus on male perspectives. **In simple terms:** Minor experiences of women might be historically crucial. Key Takeaway Recognize the importance of overlooked voices. Themes gender literature history perspective representation power Mood thoughtful critical Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - education - creative writing - media analysis - cultural studies Key Concepts feminist critique narrative theory Questions to Reflect On - How can we integrate diverse experiences into mainstream narratives? - What criteria determine a story’s universal relevance? A Different Perspective May overgeneralize the impact of isolated events. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hot summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hot-summer/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Patriarchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriarchy/) [Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/summer/) [Summer Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/summer-night/) ## Related quotes > [I know God will choose the right time for me, but dang...I'm tired of being single and alone on summer nights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-know-god-will-choose-the-right-time-for-me-but-dang-i-m-tired-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I wager we have a vast amount of literature out there that tends to the stories of men, so I've never really worried too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-wager-we-have-a-vast-amount-of-literature-out-there-that-tends-to/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [“Human beings don’t necessarily exist inside of (or correspond to) the neat racial, gendered or national boxes into which we often unthinkingly place them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshin-hamid/human-beings-don-t-necessarily-exist-inside-of-or-correspond-to-the/) Moshin Hamid > [“Time goes by at the speed of life Slower than a slow dance on a hot summer night Faster than the skin breaks on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/time-goes-by-at-the-speed-of-life-slower-than-a-slow-dance-on-a-hot/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I draw a line down the middle of a chalkboard, sketching a male symbol on one side and a female symbol on the other.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-katz/i-draw-a-line-down-the-middle-of-a-chalkboard-sketching-a-male-symbol/) [Jackson Katz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-katz/) > [“Kelly and I saw a future (otherwise known as the sixth grade) in which we would remain invisible and unchanged while around us other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monique-truong/kelly-and-i-saw-a-future-otherwise-known-as-the-sixth-grade-in-which/) [Monique Truong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monique-truong/) > [“I ended up being allowed to take that sabbatical, and it was a fantasy come true. In fact, I have a confession. This is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-pausch/i-ended-up-being-allowed-to-take-that-sabbatical-and-it-was-a-fantasy/) [Randy Pausch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-pausch/) > [ “\[T\]here is nothing brighter, crisper, more antiseptic, and cooler than a really first-rate corner drugstore on a hot summer night. If Anne Stanton is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-penn-warren/t-here-is-nothing-brighter-crisper-more-antiseptic-and-cooler-than-a/) [Robert Penn Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-penn-warren/) > [“...a summer romance that showed her stability and love could walk hand in hand. That love wasn't really what she'd been taught by her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-summer-romance-that-showed-her-stability-and-love-could-walk-hand/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [LAs more dry, but Im kind of weird in that I like the New York mugginess. I love the hot summer nights to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-kinski-jones/las-more-dry-but-im-kind-of-weird-in-that-i-like-the-new-york/) [Kenya Kinski-Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-kinski-jones/) > [You're like a cold beer, darling, on a long hot summer night.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-stewart/you-re-like-a-cold-beer-darling-on-a-long-hot-summer-night/) [Rod Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-stewart/) > [Can't wait to have warm summer nights, hot summer days, feet in the sand, tanning, parties, fun, new memories, new people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/can-t-wait-to-have-warm-summer-nights-hot-summer-days-feet-in-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We had some memorable times, on those long, hot summer nights, along the shores of the mighty Rideau; but we were by no means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arlene-stafford-wilson/we-had-some-memorable-times-on-those-long-hot-summer-nights-along-the/) [Arlene Stafford-Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arlene-stafford-wilson/) > [“another hot summer night as I sit here and play at being a writer again. and the worst thing of course is that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/another-hot-summer-night-as-i-sit-here-and-play-at-being-a-writer/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [Literature for me… tries to heal the harm done by stories. (How much harm? Most of the atrocities of history have been created by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-ryman/literature-for-me-tries-to-heal-the-harm-done-by-stories-how-much/) [Geoff Ryman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-ryman/) ## More by Kathryn Davis > [“I think she was in a book club for a while, but she quit when they stopped talking about the books and started talking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/i-think-she-was-in-a-book-club-for-a-while-but-she-quit-when-they/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“Everyone knew the meaning of a thing didn't emerge until there'd been an ending and you could finally see how all the parts worked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/everyone-knew-the-meaning-of-a-thing-didn-t-emerge-until-there-d-been/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“In my lap I had my dear little pug, the smell of whose ears will always be sweeter to me than all the perfumes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/in-my-lap-i-had-my-dear-little-pug-the-smell-of-whose-ears-will/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“Of course if a person looked at his life from above, he could see the whole thing for what it was; he'd only feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/of-course-if-a-person-looked-at-his-life-from-above-he-could-see-the/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“As the sweet apple reddens on a high branch, high on the highest branch the apple pickers forgot -- no, not forgot: were unable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/as-the-sweet-apple-reddens-on-a-high-branch-high-on-the-highest/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“Were we sexually intimate? What difference could it possibly make to you?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/were-we-sexually-intimate-what-difference-could-it-possibly-make-to/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“She tried to hear his heartbeat through the fabric of his tuxedo jacket, and the fact that she wasn't sure whether she could hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/she-tried-to-hear-his-heartbeat-through-the-fabric-of-his-tuxedo/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“She thought it was probably a good idea to like being looked at if you were a girl—it was probably key to survival. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/she-thought-it-was-probably-a-good-idea-to-like-being-looked-at-if/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“Everybody thinks it’s going to be different for them, Janice said. The dinosaurs thought so too.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/everybody-thinks-it-s-going-to-be-different-for-them-janice-said-the/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“You could try making sense out of the universe, but you were too small and the parts you needed to see were too large…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/you-could-try-making-sense-out-of-the-universe-but-you-were-too-small/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“It's a miracle, really, that any of the royal children went on to become King. But maybe there's no version of childhood that could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/it-s-a-miracle-really-that-any-of-the-royal-children-went-on-to/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“Coming to meet her love Miss Vicks had often had this sense of thwarted will, like when a large insect flies mistakenly into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/coming-to-meet-her-love-miss-vicks-had-often-had-this-sense-of/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) > [“They never got over it. They had to harden their hearts so they wouldn't keep breaking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-davis/they-never-got-over-it-they-had-to-harden-their-hearts-so-they-wouldn/) [Kathryn Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) [Explore all 14 Kathryn Davis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-davis/) ## More Hot summer quotes > [“For it is God’s love that warms me in the sun and God’s love that sends the cold rain. It is God’s love that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/for-it-is-god-s-love-that-warms-me-in-the-sun-and-god-s-love-that/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“This wasn’t the dark, tormented Tristan from her previous lives looking at her with his little boy grin. This was Hunter. Which was wonderful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-fine/this-wasn-t-the-dark-tormented-tristan-from-her-previous-lives/) [Chelsea Fine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-fine/) > [I'm obsessed with frozen yogurt because you don't feel totally guilty eating it. It's not as bad as ice cream, and during the hot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-sunshine/i-m-obsessed-with-frozen-yogurt-because-you-don-t-feel-totally-guilty/) [Caroline Sunshine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-sunshine/) > [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/) > [The Queen of Hearts, she made some tarts, all on a hot summer's day. The Knave of Hearts, he stole those tarts. The mad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jun-mochizuki/the-queen-of-hearts-she-made-some-tarts-all-on-a-hot-summer-s-day-the/) [Jun Mochizuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jun-mochizuki/) > [Violent crime is a solved problem - all they have to do is repeal the laws that keep those intelligent, capable, and responsible men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/violent-crime-is-a-solved-problem-all-they-have-to-do-is-repeal-the/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [It's going to be a long, hot summer. The hotter it gets in Baghdad, the hotter it will get in D.C.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-stephanopoulos/it-s-going-to-be-a-long-hot-summer-the-hotter-it-gets-in-baghdad-the/) [George Stephanopoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-stephanopoulos/) > [We will enjoy ourselves with the forms that are given us: a human face, a hand, the breast of a woman or the body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-beckmann/we-will-enjoy-ourselves-with-the-forms-that-are-given-us-a-human-face/) [Max Beckmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-beckmann/) > [“Liam cleared his throat again and turned to fully face me. “So, it’s the summer and you’re in Salem, suffering through another boring, hot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-bracken/liam-cleared-his-throat-again-and-turned-to-fully-face-me-so-it-s-the/) [Alexandra Bracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-bracken/) > [The Beach House seems to be a hot summer read in Hollywood, too. A director and a writer, really terrific ones, are about to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/the-beach-house-seems-to-be-a-hot-summer-read-in-hollywood-too-a/) [James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/) > [“another hot summer night as I sit here and play at being a writer again. and the worst thing of course is that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/another-hot-summer-night-as-i-sit-here-and-play-at-being-a-writer/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [“It had butterfly wings, like flakes of patterned wax. Under the wings it had a hairy body with tiny horns. Its fur looked very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-shaw/it-had-butterfly-wings-like-flakes-of-patterned-wax-under-the-wings/) [Ali Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-shaw/) > [“One hot summer evening Peregrin fell asleep under a tree. He dreamed that he was walking along a street carrying a bowl, in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-seidmann-freud/one-hot-summer-evening-peregrin-fell-asleep-under-a-tree-he-dreamed/) Tom Seidmann Freud > [Let a man walk ten miles steadily on a hot summer's day along a dusty English road, and he will soon discover why beer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/let-a-man-walk-ten-miles-steadily-on-a-hot-summer-s-day-along-a-dusty/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [“He licked me like a double scoop of French vanilla on a hot summer day. At the equator. He savored me like I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-harlow/he-licked-me-like-a-double-scoop-of-french-vanilla-on-a-hot-summer/) [Melanie Harlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-harlow/) [Browse all 83 Hot summer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hot-summer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Two adolescent girls on a hot summer night--hardly the material of great literature, which tends to endow all male experience (that of those twin brothers who found themselves adrift so many years ago in the dark northern woods for instance) with universal radiance. Faithless sons, wars and typhoons, fields of blood, greed and knives: our literature's full of such stories. And yet suppose for an instant that it wasn't the complacent father but his bored daughter who was the Prime Mover; suppose that what came first wasn't an appetite for drama but the urge to awaken it. 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