229 Quotes by Jean Rhys

When you insult or injure the unfortunate or the unhappy, you insult Christ Himself and He will not forget, for they are His chosen ones.

After all this, what happened? What happened was that, as soon as I had the slightest chance of a place to hide in, I crept into it and hid. Well, sometimes it’s a fine day isn’t it? Sometimes the skies are blue. Sometimes the air is light, easy to breathe. And there is always tomorrow...

Life if curious when reduced to its essentials.

If I was bound for hell, let it be hell. No more false heavens. No more damned magic. You hate me and I hate you. We’ll see who hates best. But first, first I will destroy your hatred. Now. My hate is colder, stronger, and you’ll have no hate to warm yourself. You will have nothing.

When I think about it, if I had to choose, I’d rather be happy than write.

I often want to cry. That is the only advantage women have over men – at least they can cry.

Only the magic and the dream are true – all the rest’s a lie.

I can remember every second of that morning, if I shut my eyes I can see the deep blue colour of the sky and the mango leaves, the pink and red hibiscus, the yellow handkerchief she wore around her head, tied in the Martinique fashion with the sharp points in front, but now I see everything still, fixed for ever like the colours in a stained-glass window. Only the clouds move. It was wrapped in a leaf, what she had given me, and I felt it cool and smooth against my skin.

I had two longings and one was fighting the other. I wanted to be loved and I wanted to be always alone.