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Meaning
The quote says regret often builds so slowly that a person cannot clearly identify the exact moment happiness ended. It suggests emotional change can be gradual rather than sudden. The wording also implies that loss of contentment may only be understood in hindsight.
When It Was Said
Not documented yet.
Who It Was Said To
Not documented yet.
Historical Context
Not documented yet.
Source
Where Angels Fear to Tread, Chapter 4
Original Language & Translation
Originally said in English.
Did They Really Say It?
The phrase appears verbatim in the public-domain text "Where Angels Fear to Tread, Chapter 4" (Wikisource); no earlier source was checked.
Did You Know?
Not documented yet.
About E.M. Forster
English author
Edward Morgan Forster was an English author. He is known for his novels, including A Room with a View, Howards End and A Passage to India. He also wrote short stories, essays, speeches, broadcasts, biographies and pageant plays, and he co-authored the libretto for Benjamin Britten's opera Billy Budd. His fiction often looks at class differences and hypocrisy, and his humanist outlook is central to his work.
More from E.M. Forster (117 quotes) →Keep reading E.M. Forster
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- “We cast a shadow on something wherever we stand, and it is no good moving from place to place to save things;…”E.M. Forster
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Happiness: more sayings
- “Suffering in the path of Christian obedience, with joy - because the steadfast love of the Lord is better tha…”John Piper
- “You know, all that really matters is that the people you love are happy and healthy. Everything else is just…”Paul Walker
- “Do not conform to seek the seekers, but leave the leavers. Wisdom comes from facing what you do not yet under…”Shannon L. Alder