In this quote, Charles Dickens describes a situation where someone is metaphorically pouring out condescension onto everyone around them, illustrating how the individual is behaving in a patronizing or superior manner towards others.
In this quote, Charles Dickens uses the metaphor of a "gallon of condescension" to convey a sense of overwhelming arrogance and superiority. The image of a gallon implies an excess of condescension, as if it is being poured out in copious amounts upon everyone. This suggests that the speaker or the subject of the quote is greatly disdainful towards others, looking down upon them with a sense of superiority. The use of the word "everybody" further emphasizes the widespread and indiscriminate nature of this condescension, indicating that it is not targeted at specific individuals but rather a pervasive attitude that affects all. Overall, Dickens' choice of metaphor effectively conveys the idea of arrogance and superiority in a vivid and impactful way.
In today's society, where social media and online interactions often fuel a culture of superiority and condescension, Dickens' words about spreading condescension upon everybody hold a striking relevance. With the prevalence of keyboard warriors and internet trolls, this quote serves as a reminder of the importance of treating others with respect and empathy, both online and offline.
Consider the quote by Charles Dickens, "a gallon of condescension, upon everybody." How does this quote resonate with you? How do you think condescension affects relationships and interactions with others? In what ways can individuals work towards minimizing condescension in their interactions with others? Have you ever experienced condescension or been guilty of being condescending towards others? How did this impact the relationship or situation? What can be done to promote more respectful and understanding communication in our interactions with others?
“The speaker, and the schoolmaster, and the third grown person present, all backed a little, and swept with their eyes the inclined plane of little vessels then and there arranged in order, ready to have imperial gallons of facts poured into them until they were full to the brim.”
“Everybody said so.Far be it from me to assert that what everybody says must be true. Everybody is, often, as likely to be wrong as right. In the general experience, everybody has been wrong so often, and it has taken in most instances such a weary while to find out how wrong, that the authority is proved to be fallible. Everybody may sometimes be right; "but that's no rule," as the ghost of Giles Scroggins says in the ballad.”
“It was a maxim with Foxey- our revered father, gentlemen - 'Always suspect everybody.”
“A curious monomaniac,' said Eugene. 'The man seems to believe that everybody was acquainted with his mother!”
“If I dropped a tear upon your hand, may it wither it up! If I spoke a gentle word in your hearing, may it deafen you! If I touched you with my lips, may the touch be poison to you! A curse upon this roof that gave me shelter! Sorrow and shame upon your head! Ruin upon all belonging to you!”
“A horse is a quadruped, and quadruped's latin for beast, as everybody that's gone through grammar knows, or else what's the use in having grammars at all?”