--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: She looked, and a scarlet butterfly flew…" description: "\"She looked, and a scarlet butterfly flew away from her, away down the length of the tower, and then another, another, an unraveling scarf of butterflie..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92c/tanith-lee-3374_blood_she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew_2464705.jpg" --- # She looked, and a scarlet butterfly flew away from her… ![“She looked, and a scarlet butterfly flew away from her, away down the length of the tower, and then another, another, an unraveling scarf of butterflies like winged blood.” quote by Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92c/tanith-lee-3374_blood_she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew_2464705.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92c/tanith-lee-3374_blood_she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew_2464705.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92c/tanith-lee-3374_blood_she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew_2464705.jpg) > “She looked, and a scarlet butterfly flew away from her, away down the length of the tower, and then another, another, an unraveling scarf of butterflies like winged blood.” [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A vivid image of butterflies escaping, symbolizing fragile beauty and perhaps fleeting freedom. **In simple terms:** Butterflies represent delicate, fleeting beauty. Key Takeaway Cherish fleeting moments of beauty. Themes beauty fragility freedom Mood poetic reflective Type inspirational melancholic When to use this quote - garden walks - artistic inspiration - personal reflection - creative writing Key Concepts symbolism imagery transience Questions to Reflect On - What does the butterfly symbolize for you? - How do you cope with fleeting beauty? A Different Perspective The metaphor may romanticize loss without addressing underlying sorrow. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Butterfly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/butterfly/) ## Related quotes > [For some time she observed a great yellow butterfly, which was opening and closing its wings very slowly on a little flat stone. "What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/for-some-time-she-observed-a-great-yellow-butterfly-which-was-opening/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“The guard looked down at the scarlet bloodstains blooming on his chest. He appeared to think of something that he needed to say, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-d-ronald/the-guard-looked-down-at-the-scarlet-bloodstains-blooming-on-his/) [R.D. Ronald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-d-ronald/) > [“Heather looked Scarlet up and down for the first time that day. “The brown shirt, Scarlet? Wow. I know you’ve already snagged the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-fine/heather-looked-scarlet-up-and-down-for-the-first-time-that-day-the/) [Chelsea Fine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-fine/) > [My father gave me a bat for Christmas. The first time I tried to play with it, it flew away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-dangerfield/my-father-gave-me-a-bat-for-christmas-the-first-time-i-tried-to-play/) [Rodney Dangerfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-dangerfield/) > [The stars were my best friends. The air was full of legends and phantoms, full of mythical and fair-tale creatures, which suddenly flew away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-chagall/the-stars-were-my-best-friends-the-air-was-full-of-legends-and/) [Marc Chagall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-chagall/) > [“Then the birds flew away, their names turned to kisses, a silence to spell a new world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessie-burton/then-the-birds-flew-away-their-names-turned-to-kisses-a-silence-to/) [Jessie Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessie-burton/) > [I bought my son a bat for Christmas. On New Year's it flew away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/i-bought-my-son-a-bat-for-christmas-on-new-year-s-it-flew-away/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [“Having managed to break the bread in half, the bird flew away so quickly, it seemed to melt into the blue sky. Philippe looked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-pancol/having-managed-to-break-the-bread-in-half-the-bird-flew-away-so/) Katherine Pancol > [When she was just a girl she expected the world, but it flew away from her reach so she ran away in her sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-she-was-just-a-girl-she-expected-the-world-but-it-flew-away-from/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We must wait," she said. "They are involved in important buisness." Her tone was serious, almost reverntial. The two of them stopped, some five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/we-must-wait-she-said-they-are-involved-in-important-buisness-her/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [“Love came easy, but it just wasn't for me. It flew away like swallows on a summer evening. Love sang softly, but it just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-dean-myers/love-came-easy-but-it-just-wasn-t-for-me-it-flew-away-like-swallows/) [Walter Dean Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-dean-myers/) > [Her eyes, walnut brown and shaded by fanned lashes, met mine. Held for a moment. Flew away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/her-eyes-walnut-brown-and-shaded-by-fanned-lashes-met-mine-held-for-a/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [What a childhood I had. Once on my birthday my ol' man gave me a bat. The first day I played with it, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-dangerfield/what-a-childhood-i-had-once-on-my-birthday-my-ol-man-gave-me-a-bat/) [Rodney Dangerfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-dangerfield/) > [“It flew away, whatever it was, and now he squinted up and remembered that it was the first time in a long spell he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfrido-d-nolledo/it-flew-away-whatever-it-was-and-now-he-squinted-up-and-remembered/) Wilfrido D. Nolledo > [“All the eyes flew away from me like mayflies, I couldn't catch a single one”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/y-ko-tawada/all-the-eyes-flew-away-from-me-like-mayflies-i-couldn-t-catch-a/) [Yōko Tawada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/y-ko-tawada/) ## More by Tanith Lee > [No one more cynical than an idealist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/no-one-more-cynical-than-an-idealist/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [The humble were the elect of God. Did not the priests teach so, in their gemmed, kingly robes, from their towering pulpits?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/the-humble-were-the-elect-of-god-did-not-the-priests-teach-so-in/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Having told of so much beauty, how is it possible to tell of her? There are no words left on the earth in any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/having-told-of-so-much-beauty-how-is-it-possible-to-tell-of-her-there/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [As a child, my mother told me lots of fairy stories, many her own invention. She, too, tended to reverse the norm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/as-a-child-my-mother-told-me-lots-of-fairy-stories-many-her-own/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Often misunderstood, Dionysus is far more than a wine deity. He is the Breaker of Chains, who rescues not only the flesh but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/often-misunderstood-dionysus-is-far-more-than-a-wine-deity-he-is-the/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [In the usual way I submitted manuscripts to publishers. This was not so much a feeling that I should be published as a wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/in-the-usual-way-i-submitted-manuscripts-to-publishers-this-was-not/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [Whatever the hell I am, I am Me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/whatever-the-hell-i-am-i-am-me/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [If they had said my writing wasn't good enough, fair enough, that's an opinion. But to say it's too complex is to insult the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/if-they-had-said-my-writing-wasn-t-good-enough-fair-enough-that-s-an/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Louisa beheld the grounds and house with the calm pleasure of one who has seen nothing, been nowhere, expects everything, and has little imagination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/louisa-beheld-the-grounds-and-house-with-the-calm-pleasure-of-one-who/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Live and let love. Love and let go. Go live.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/live-and-let-love-love-and-let-go-go-live/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [Pirates have always fascinated me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/pirates-have-always-fascinated-me/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“All the Scarabae—all but one—were crowded in the garden. They watched her. Their grim old faces gave away nothing. Like elderly kiddies at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/all-the-scarabae-all-but-one-were-crowded-in-the-garden-they-watched/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“She did this not out of fear of him, but out of pity. Because she had come to see the ultimate terrible truth behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/she-did-this-not-out-of-fear-of-him-but-out-of-pity-because-she-had/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [Writing is writing, and stories are stories. Perhaps the only true genres are fiction and nonfiction. And even there, who can be sure?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/writing-is-writing-and-stories-are-stories-perhaps-the-only-true/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Tanaquil gently toed the peeve. "I'll unfasten the window. Jump out to the lower roof and run." "Stay and bite," said the peeve.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/tanaquil-gently-toed-the-peeve-i-ll-unfasten-the-window-jump-out-to/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) [Explore all 131 Tanith Lee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) ## More Blood quotes > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [Don't trust everyone, because one day you will shed tears of blood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunshine/don-t-trust-everyone-because-one-day-you-will-shed-tears-of-blood/) [SunShine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunshine/) > [I have no intention of retiring. Even my blood sugar is better when I'm working.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-stritch/i-have-no-intention-of-retiring-even-my-blood-sugar-is-better-when-i/) [Elaine Stritch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-stritch/) > [What about you three, where are you going?" Even before Halt answered, Will knew what he was going to say. But that didn't make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/what-about-you-three-where-are-you-going-even-before-halt-answered/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [A day without blood is like a day without sunshine!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-lee-ermey/a-day-without-blood-is-like-a-day-without-sunshine/) [R. Lee Ermey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-lee-ermey/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“...I wore his blood for clothing, on my legs and thighs and hands: a dry, stiff, brown garment with no warmth in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/i-wore-his-blood-for-clothing-on-my-legs-and-thighs-and-hands-a-dry/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I don't think you should ever say, 'This is the last time'. Music isn't like that. You'll be sitting there not wishing to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-daltrey/i-don-t-think-you-should-ever-say-this-is-the-last-time-music-isn-t/) [Roger Daltrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-daltrey/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [I think cricket is there in Usain Bolt's blood. Since I got to watch from close quarters, it was amazing to see him run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh/i-think-cricket-is-there-in-usain-bolt-s-blood-since-i-got-to-watch/) [Harbhajan Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh/) > [Holy shadows of the dead, I'm not to blame for your cruel and bitter fate, but the accursed rivalry which brought sister nations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/holy-shadows-of-the-dead-i-m-not-to-blame-for-your-cruel-and-bitter/) [Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/) > [“The sun had burned through and the day had gone from dull to dazzling, yet in the west blask-satin thunderheads continued to stack up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-sun-had-burned-through-and-the-day-had-gone-from-dull-to-dazzling/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) Browse all 6,234 Blood quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "She looked, and a scarlet butterfly flew away from her, away down the length of the tower, and then another, another, an unraveling scarf of butterflies like winged blood.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tanith Lee" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew-away-from-her-away-down-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Blood" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew-away-from-her-away-down-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92c/tanith-lee-3374_blood_she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew_2464705.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92c/tanith-lee-3374_blood_she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew_2464705.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92c/tanith-lee-3374_blood_she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew_2464705.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“She looked, and a scarlet butterfly flew away from her, away down the length of the tower, and then another…” — Tanith Lee", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Tanith Lee", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "She looked, and a scarlet butterfly...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew-away-from-her-away-down-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/she-looked-and-a-scarlet-butterfly-flew-away-from-her-away-down-the/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```