Muriel Spark · 150 pages
Rating: (33.9K votes)
“To me education is a leading out of what is already there in the pupil's soul.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“The word "education" comes from the root e from ex, out, and duco, I lead. It means a leading out. To me education is a leading out of what is already there in the pupil's soul.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“Allow me, in conclusion, to congratulate you warmly upon your sexual intercourse, as well as your singing.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“For those who like that sort of thing," said Miss Brodie in her best Edinburgh voice, "That is the sort of thing they like.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“It is well, when in difficulties, to say never a word, neither black nor white. Speech is silver but silence is golden.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“Give me a girl at an impressionable age and she is mine for life.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“These years are still the years of my prime. It is important to recognise the years of one's prime, always remember that.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“The word 'education' comes from the root e from ex, out, and duco, I lead. It means a leading out. To me education is a leading out of what is already there in the pupil's soul. To Miss Mackay it is a putting in of something that is not there, and that is not what I call education, I call it intrusion, from the Latin root prefix in meaning in and the stem trudo, I thrust.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“One’s prime is elusive. You little girls, when you grow up, must be on the alert to recognise your prime at whatever time of your life it may occur. You must then live it to the full.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“4:15. Not 4 not 4:30 but 4:15. She thought to intimidate me with the use of quarter hours.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“Miss Brodie was easily the equal of both sisters together, she was the square on the hypotenuse of a right-angled triangle and they were only the squares on the other two sides.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“... flattening their scorn underneath the chariot wheels of her superiority.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“The Brodie set did not for a moment doubt that she would prevail. As soon expect Julius Caesar to apply for a job at a crank school as Miss Brodie. She would never resign. If the authorities wanted to get rid of her she would have to be assassinated.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“Phrases like 'the team spirit' are always employed to cut across individualism, love and personal loyalties.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“Six years previously, Miss Brodie had led her new class into the garden for a history lesson underneath the big elm. On the way through the school corridors they passed the headmistress's study. The door was wide open, the room was empty.
'Little girls,' said Miss Brodie, 'come and observe this.'
They clustered round the open door while she pointed to a large poster pinned with drawing-pins on the opposite wall within the room. It depicted a man's big face. Underneath were the words 'Safety First'.
'This is Stanley Baldwin who got in as Prime Minister and got out again ere long,' said Miss Brodie. 'Miss Mackay retains him on the wall because she believes in the slogan "Safety First". But Safety does not come first. Goodness, Truth and Beauty come first. Follow me.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“Do you know, Sandy dear, all my ambitions are for you and Rose. You have got insight, perhaps not quite spiritual, but you're a deep one, and Rose has got instinct.'
'Perhaps not quite spiritual' said Sandy.
'Yes,' said Miss Brodie, 'you're right. Rose has got a future by virtue of her instinct.'
...
'I ought to know because my prime has brought me instinct and insight, both.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“I am putting old heads on your young shoulders,' Miss Brodie had told them at the time.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“I'm not saying anything against the Modern side.
Modern and Classical, they are equal, and each provides for a function in life. You must make your free choice. Not everyone is capable of a Classical education. You must make your choice quite freely.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“[...] there were other people's Edinburghs quite different from hers [...]”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
“Sandy felt warmly towards Miss Brodie at these times when she saw how she was misled in her idea of Rose. It was then that Miss Brodie looked beautiful and fragile, just as dark heavy Edinburgh itself could suddenly be changed into a floating city when the light was a special pearly white and fell upon one of the gracefully fashioned streets. In the same way Miss Brodie's masterful features became clear and sweet to Sandy when viewed in the curious light of the woman's folly, and she never felt more affection for her in her later years than when she thought upon Miss Brodie silly.”
― Muriel Spark, quote from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
Muriel Spark
Born place: in Edinburgh, Scotland
Born date February 1, 1918
See more on GoodReads
“A smile hiding my bitter disappointment, conscious of Jack’s hand on my back.”
― B.A. Paris, quote from Behind Closed Doors
“He scarcely saw his parents. When Christopher was small, he was terrified that he would meet Papa out walking in the Park one day and not recognize him.”
― Diana Wynne Jones, quote from The Lives of Christopher Chant
“It had happened again. I had met another American whose generosity, it began to seem to me, gushed out of the spirit of this land.”
― Peter Jenkins, quote from A Walk Across America
“The warmth of his embrace soaked into me, a powerful charm against the dark things.”
― Juliet Marillier, quote from Heart's Blood
“Success involves failing first. Ask any successful person. Ask any experienced person, really. It's all part of the creative process, so sit back and allow the artist within you to sprout, blossom and flourish. You must accept that your first, second, and third attempt at something might suck. It's a necessary step in improving your skill. Failure is your teacher, not your judge.”
― Connor Franta, quote from A Work in Progress
Holy the Firm
The Boy Who Dared
The Story of Philoso...
Lives of Girls and W...
Genghis Khan and the...
Lizzie Bright and th...BookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.
We thoughtfully gather quotes from our favorite books, both classic and current, and choose the ones that are most thought-provoking. Each quote represents a book that is interesting, well written and has potential to enhance the reader’s life. We also accept submissions from our visitors and will select the quotes we feel are most appealing to the BookQuoters community.
Founded in 2023, BookQuoters has quickly become a large and vibrant community of people who share an affinity for books. Books are seen by some as a throwback to a previous world; conversely, gleaning the main ideas of a book via a quote or a quick summary is typical of the Information Age but is a habit disdained by some diehard readers. We feel that we have the best of both worlds at BookQuoters; we read books cover-to-cover but offer you some of the highlights. We hope you’ll join us.
