--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He thought he stood upon an English…" description: "\"“He thought he stood upon an English hillside. Rain was falling; it twisted in the air like grey ghosts. Rain fell upon him and he grew thin as rain. R..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e9/susanna-clarke-1559_nature_he-thought-he-stood-upon-an-english-hill_2285949.jpg" --- # He thought he stood upon an English hillside. Rain was… ![“He thought he stood upon an English hillside. Rain was falling; it twisted in the air like grey ghosts. Rain fell upon him and he grew thin as rain. Rain washed away thought, washed away memory, all the good and the bad. He no longer knew his name. Everything was washed away like mud from a stone…” quote by Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e9/susanna-clarke-1559_nature_he-thought-he-stood-upon-an-english-hill_2285949.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e9/susanna-clarke-1559_nature_he-thought-he-stood-upon-an-english-hill_2285949.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e9/susanna-clarke-1559_nature_he-thought-he-stood-upon-an-english-hill_2285949.jpg) > ““He thought he stood upon an English hillside. Rain was falling; it twisted in the air like grey ghosts. Rain fell upon him and he grew thin as rain. Rain washed away thought, washed away memory, all the good and the bad. He no longer knew his name. Everything was washed away like mud from a stone. Rain filled him up with thoughts and memories of its own. Silver lines of water covered the hillside, like intricate lace, like the veins of an arm. Forgetting that he was, or ever had been, a man, he became the lines of water. He fell into the earth with the rain. He thought he lay beneath the earth, beneath England. Long ages passed; cold and rain seeped through him; stones shifted within him. In the Silence and the Dark he grew vast. He became the earth; he became England. A star looked down on him and spoke to him. A stone asked him a question and he answered it in its own language. A river curled at his side; hills budded beneath his fingers. He opened his mouth and breathed out spring. He thought he was pressed into a thicket in a dark wood in winter. The trees went on for Over dark pillars separated by thin, white slices of winter light. He looked down. Young saplings pierced him through and through; they grew up through his body, through his feet and hands. His eye-lids would no longer close because twigs had grown up through them.”” [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A surreal narrative where rain erodes identity, merging the protagonist with nature and history, reflecting on memory, transformation, and the fluidity of self. **In simple terms:** Rain dissolves self, merging with earth and history. Key Takeaway Embrace change and the interconnectedness of self and environment. Themes identity transformation memory nature history Mood melancholic reflective poetic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - grief processing - creative writing - philosophical reflection - environmental awareness Key Concepts metaphor existentialism mythic storytelling Questions to Reflect On - How does the rain symbolize loss and renewal? - What does becoming the landscape say about personal identity? A Different Perspective The abstract style may obscure concrete meaning for some readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rain/) ## Related quotes > [“Rain fell more steadily now. Grey and unrelenting. Nobody seemed to notice. Rain on the puddles. Rain on the high brickwork. Rain on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/rain-fell-more-steadily-now-grey-and-unrelenting-nobody-seemed-to/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“Time was a funny thing... Instead of marching in at a measured pace, it seemed to flow like a river. 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Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-l-wilson/) > [God is a cloud from which rain fell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/god-is-a-cloud-from-which-rain-fell/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [“Thunder crashed, lightning ripped across the sky, and we stayed on the bench with our arms around each other even though rain fell in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorraine-zago-rosenthal/thunder-crashed-lightning-ripped-across-the-sky-and-we-stayed-on-the/) [Lorraine Zago Rosenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorraine-zago-rosenthal/) > [“at first when the rain fell from the sky so wide and deep it smelled like sage, my favorite smell I went up on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-condie/at-first-when-the-rain-fell-from-the-sky-so-wide-and-deep-it-smelled/) [Ally Condie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-condie/) > [May 8th 1943. Deluge. 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That, sir, is the English way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/you-must-learn-to-live-as-i-do-in-the-face-of-constant-criticism/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“Can a magician kill a man by magic?” Lord Wellington asked Strange. Strange frowned. He seemed to dislike the question. “I suppose a magician…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/can-a-magician-kill-a-man-by-magic-lord-wellington-asked-strange/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [How is a magician to exist without books? Let someone explain that to me. It is like asking a politician to achieve high office…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/how-is-a-magician-to-exist-without-books-let-someone-explain-that-to/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“Mr Norrell was delighted. 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Rain was falling; it twisted in the air like grey ghosts. Rain fell upon him and he grew thin as rain. Rain washed away thought, washed away memory, all the good and the bad. He no longer knew his name. Everything was washed away like mud from a stone. Rain filled him up with thoughts and memories of its own. Silver lines of water covered the hillside, like intricate lace, like the veins of an arm. Forgetting that he was, or ever had been, a man, he became the lines of water. He fell into the earth with the rain. He thought he lay beneath the earth, beneath England. Long ages passed; cold and rain seeped through him; stones shifted within him. In the Silence and the Dark he grew vast. He became the earth; he became England. A star looked down on him and spoke to him. A stone asked him a question and he answered it in its own language. A river curled at his side; hills budded beneath his fingers. He opened his mouth and breathed out spring. He thought he was pressed into a thicket in a dark wood in winter. The trees went on for Over dark pillars separated by thin, white slices of winter light. He looked down. Young saplings pierced him through and through; they grew up through his body, through his feet and hands. 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