Sunday, January 24, 2010

Insight, Intuition, & Imagination

Subject:  Insight  
Quote:  “The art of writing gives one an insight into human nature,” he said gravely.  “One sees, perhaps, motives that the ordinary person would pass by.”
            “I know, dear,” said Miss Marple, “that your books are very clever.  But do you think that people are really so unpleasant as you make them out to be?”
            “My dear Aunt,” said Raymond gently, “Keep your beliefs.  Heaven forbid that I should in any way shatter them.”  
            “I mean,” said Miss Marple…“that so many people seem to me not to be either bad or good, but simply, you know, very silly.”
Character:  Raymond West and Miss Jane Marple
Chapter/Story:  1—“The Tuesday Night Club”
Book Title/Copyright:  The Tuesday Club Murders, 1928


Subject:  Intuition
Quote:  “I am not only a woman—and say what you like, women have an intuition that is denied to men—I am an artist as well.  I see things that you don’t.  And then, too, as an artist I have knocked about among all sorts and conditions of people.  I know life as darling Miss Marple here cannot possibly know it.”
            “I don’t know about that, dear,” said Miss Marple.  “Very painful and distressing things happen in villages sometimes.”
Character:  Joyce Lempriere and Miss Jane Marple
Chapter/Story: 1—“The Tuesday Night Club”
Book Title/Copyright:  The Tuesday Club Murders, 1928



Subject:  Imagination
Quote:  “Don’t you think…that you attach too much weight to imagination?  Imagination is a very dangerous thing, as we lawyers know only too well.  To be able to sift evidence impartially, to take facts and look at them as facts—that seems to me the only logical method of arriving at the truth.  I may add that in my experience it is the only one that succeeds.”
Character:  Mr. Petherick
Chapter/Story:  1—“The Tuesday Night Club”
Book Title/Copyright:  The Tuesday Club Murders, 1928


Subject: Intuition
Quote:  “In a well-balanced, reasoning mind there is no such thing as an intuition—an inspired guess!  You can guess, of course—and a guess is either right or wrong.  If it is right you call it an intuition.  If it is wrong you usually do not speak of it again.  But what is often called an intuition is really an impression based on logical deduction or experience.  When an expert feels that there is something wrong about a picture or a piece of furniture or the signature on a cheque, he is really basing that feeling on a host of small signs and details.  He has no need to go into them minutely—his experience obviates that—the net result is the definite impression that something is wrong.  But it is not a guess, it is an impression based on experience.”
Character:  M. Hercule Poirot 
Chapter/Story: 34 – Poirot Explains
Book Title/Copyright:  The A.B.C. Murders, 1936