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Agnes Grey
Alice is the daughter of a rich squire who disinherited her when she chose to marry the poor clergyman she loved, Richard Grey, rather than some wealthy and titled man. A brave, principled, and resilient woman, Alice never regrets having given up wealth and status for love. She homeschools her two surviving children, Mary and Agnes, and does her best to keep the family within its meager budget. Though initially hesitant about Agnes’s plan to work as a governess, Alice later helps her daughter find work. After Richard dies following a long illness, Alice receives a letter from her father offering to support her financially and write Mary and Agnes into his will if Alice will only apologize for and admit she regrets marrying Richard. Alice refuses on principle, saying she has no regrets. Afterwards, she and Agnes found a small but growing school together in a fashionable coastal town in England. She gets along very well with Agnes’s suitor Mr. Weston and gives her consent when he asks to propose to Agnes.
Agnes’s Mother/Alice Grey Quotes in Agnes Grey
The Agnes Grey quotes below are all either spoken by Agnes’s Mother/Alice Grey or refer to Agnes’s Mother/Alice Grey. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 1: The Parsonage
Quotes
An elegant house and spacious grounds were not to be despised; but she would rather live in a cottage with Richard Grey than in a palace with any other man in the world.
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Chapter 8: The ‘Coming Out’
Quotes
“You did not ask me if Mr Richardson were a good, wise, or amiable man.”
Chapter 13: The Primroses
Quotes
As for the primroses, I kept two of them in a glass in my room until they were completely withered, and the housemaid threw them out; and the petals of the other I pressed between the leaves of my Bible—I have them still, and mean to keep them always.
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Chapter 19: The Letter
Quotes
“[I]f he married a richer wife, misfortunes and trials would no doubt have come upon him still; while I am egotist enough to imagine that no other woman could have cheered him through that so well: not that I am superior to the rest, but I was made for him, and he for me[.]”
Chapter 20: The Farewell
Quotes
We often pity the poor, because they have no leisure to mourn their departed relatives, and necessity obliges them to labour through their severest afflictions: but is not active employment the best remedy for overwhelming sorrow—the surest antidote for despair?
Chapter 22: The Visit
Quotes
“It’s the husband’s part to please the wife, not hers to please him; and if he isn’t satisfied with her as she is—and thankful to possess her too—he isn’t worthy of her, that’s all.”
Get the entire Agnes Grey LitChart as a printable PDF.
Agnes’s Mother/Alice Grey Quotes in Agnes Grey
The Agnes Grey quotes below are all either spoken by Agnes’s Mother/Alice Grey or refer to Agnes’s Mother/Alice Grey. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 1: The Parsonage
Quotes
An elegant house and spacious grounds were not to be despised; but she would rather live in a cottage with Richard Grey than in a palace with any other man in the world.
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 8: The ‘Coming Out’
Quotes
“You did not ask me if Mr Richardson were a good, wise, or amiable man.”
Chapter 13: The Primroses
Quotes
As for the primroses, I kept two of them in a glass in my room until they were completely withered, and the housemaid threw them out; and the petals of the other I pressed between the leaves of my Bible—I have them still, and mean to keep them always.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 19: The Letter
Quotes
“[I]f he married a richer wife, misfortunes and trials would no doubt have come upon him still; while I am egotist enough to imagine that no other woman could have cheered him through that so well: not that I am superior to the rest, but I was made for him, and he for me[.]”
Chapter 20: The Farewell
Quotes
We often pity the poor, because they have no leisure to mourn their departed relatives, and necessity obliges them to labour through their severest afflictions: but is not active employment the best remedy for overwhelming sorrow—the surest antidote for despair?
Chapter 22: The Visit
Quotes
“It’s the husband’s part to please the wife, not hers to please him; and if he isn’t satisfied with her as she is—and thankful to possess her too—he isn’t worthy of her, that’s all.”
