--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Around me the beautiful windows…" description: "\"“Around me the beautiful windows, connecting me to other lives and other times, to things done and also deliberately left undone, stood dark. Rose, I w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/kim-edwards-3145_beauty_around-me-the-beautiful-windows-connecti_2885653.png" --- # Around me the beautiful windows, connecting me to other… ![“Around me the beautiful windows, connecting me to other lives and other times, to things done and also deliberately left undone, stood dark. Rose, I was sure, had acted out of love, yet for Iris her mother's absence had remained an unresolved sadness at the center of her life. I thought of what…” quote by Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/kim-edwards-3145_beauty_around-me-the-beautiful-windows-connecti_2885653.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/kim-edwards-3145_beauty_around-me-the-beautiful-windows-connecti_2885653.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/346/kim-edwards-3145_beauty_around-me-the-beautiful-windows-connecti_2885653.png) > ““Around me the beautiful windows, connecting me to other lives and other times, to things done and also deliberately left undone, stood dark. Rose, I was sure, had acted out of love, yet for Iris her mother's absence had remained an unresolved sadness at the center of her life. I thought of what Rose had written about anger, about its power to corrupt, to make a space for evil. Maybe she was right. Maybe evil, that old-fashioned word, could be called other things, disharmony or dysfunction. Maybe Rose was right and evil wasn't attached top an individual as much as if was a force in the world, a seeing force, one that worked like a self-replicating virus, seeking to entangle, to ensnare, to undo beauty. \[p.353\]”” [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator reflects on how evil can be a pervasive, self‑replicating force that corrupts, suggesting that malevolence is systemic rather than solely personal. **In simple terms:** Evil spreads like a virus, affecting many. Key Takeaway Recognize and address systemic harms, not just individual bad actors. Themes evil corruption systemic harm psychology philosophy Mood thoughtful reflective serious Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - family dynamics - social injustice - personal reflection - ethical debates Key Concepts viral metaphor moral philosophy social critique Questions to Reflect On - What structures enable systemic harm? - How can individuals counteract pervasive negativity? A Different Perspective Attributing evil to a virus may oversimplify complex moral agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“If we believe that god is the creator of evil, maybe there is evil also in heaven, if that is the case, we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/if-we-believe-that-god-is-the-creator-of-evil-maybe-there-is-evil/) [Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/) > [“Beauvoir knew that the root of all evil wasn’t money. No, what created and drove evil was fear. Fear of not having enough money,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-penny/beauvoir-knew-that-the-root-of-all-evil-wasn-t-money-no-what-created/) [Louise Penny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-penny/) > [“The banality of evil. It wasn’t the frothing madman. It was the conscientious us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-penny/the-banality-of-evil-it-wasn-t-the-frothing-madman-it-was-the/) [Louise Penny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-penny/) > [If your thought is a rose, you are a rose garden; and if it is a thistle, you are fuel for the fire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/if-your-thought-is-a-rose-you-are-a-rose-garden-and-if-it-is-a/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [He thought that the rose was to be found in its own eternity and not in his words; and that we may mention or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/he-thought-that-the-rose-was-to-be-found-in-its-own-eternity-and-not/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [“I thought Rose was making that fucking shit up.” “When you string together curse words, I go deaf a little in my right ear,”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krista-ritchie/i-thought-rose-was-making-that-fucking-shit-up-when-you-string/) [Krista Ritchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krista-ritchie/) > [But she wondered why beautiful things had to be wrapped up with evil history. Or was it the other way around? Maybe the evil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/but-she-wondered-why-beautiful-things-had-to-be-wrapped-up-with-evil/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [ “\[after discussion about what evil is, a question asked to Elphaba on why she killed Madame Morrible\] "Why did you do it?" asked the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-maguire/after-discussion-about-what-evil-is-a-question-asked-to-elphaba-on/) [Gregory Maguire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-maguire/) > [For fun? 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When goodness removes itself, the space…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-maguire/some-said-the-original-evil-was-the-vacuum-caused-by-the-fairy-queen/) [Gregory Maguire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-maguire/) > [“We take comfort in the notion of an unbridgeable gulf between good and evil, but maybe we should understand, as Zimbardo's work suggested, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-bauer/we-take-comfort-in-the-notion-of-an-unbridgeable-gulf-between-good/) Shane Bauer > [Evil is maybe lying to God. Or better, lying to love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/evil-is-maybe-lying-to-god-or-better-lying-to-love/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [“You're only two handshakes away from evil… Maybe it's the same thing with goodness. We're never far from what's good… It doesn't seem like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-kazinski/you-re-only-two-handshakes-away-from-evil-maybe-it-s-the-same-thing/) [A.J. Kazinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-kazinski/) ## More by Kim Edwards > [In writing, I want to be remembered for telling good stories in beautiful and powerful language, using the poetry of words to reflect the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/in-writing-i-want-to-be-remembered-for-telling-good-stories-in/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) > [Its impossible to control the reception of your work - the only thing you can control is the experience of writing itself, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/its-impossible-to-control-the-reception-of-your-work-the-only-thing/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) > [My first job was in a nursing home - a terrible place in retrospect. 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He held it, warming in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/he-fished-in-his-pocket-for-his-keys-and-instead-pulled-out-the-last/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) > [Away from the bright motion of the party, she carried her sadness like a dark stone clenched in her palm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/away-from-the-bright-motion-of-the-party-she-carried-her-sadness-like/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) > [Norah watched him, serious and utterly absorbed in his task, overcome by the simple fact of his existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/norah-watched-him-serious-and-utterly-absorbed-in-his-task-overcome/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) > [“Anything can happen. But what goes wrong isn’t your fault. You can’t spend the rest of your life tiptoeing around to try and avert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/anything-can-happen-but-what-goes-wrong-isn-t-your-fault-you-can-t/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) > [Though Lexington is not a small town, it sometimes feels like one, with circles of acquaintance overlapping once, then again; the person you meet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/though-lexington-is-not-a-small-town-it-sometimes-feels-like-one-with/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) > [“It's a kind of power, isn't it, knowing a secret? But lately I don't like it so much, knowing this. It's not really mine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/it-s-a-kind-of-power-isn-t-it-knowing-a-secret-but-lately-i-don-t/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) > [After Memory Keepers Daughter, it took me a few months to shut out the world. I really had to turn off the Internet and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/after-memory-keepers-daughter-it-took-me-a-few-months-to-shut-out-the/) [Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) [Explore all 136 Kim Edwards quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/) ## More Beauty quotes > [We do not want nowadays temples of worship and outward rites and ceremonies. What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [To fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity, and still be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tool/to-fathom-the-power-to-witness-the-beauty-to-bathe-in-the-fountain-to/) [Tool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tool/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [“We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/we-ve-all-met-people-who-are-beautiful-on-the-outside-however-when/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) > [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/) [Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [“I already love in you your beauty, but I am only beginning to love in you that which is eternal and ever precious –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-already-love-in-you-your-beauty-but-i-am-only-beginning-to-love-in/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. 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It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) > [“What about you? What do you do?” I needed to ask questions, draw him out. I needed to find out all the information I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-avery-ellison/what-about-you-what-do-you-do-i-needed-to-ask-questions-draw-him-out/) [Kate Avery Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-avery-ellison/) [Browse all 24,662 Beauty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Around me the beautiful windows, connecting me to other lives and other times, to things done and also deliberately left undone, stood dark. Rose, I was sure, had acted out of love, yet for Iris her mother's absence had remained an unresolved sadness at the center of her life. 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