The Moving Finger Quotes

“Dogs are wise. They crawl away into a quiet corner and lick their wounds and do not rejoin the world until they are whole once more.”
― Agatha Christe, The Moving Finger

“There is too much tendency to attribute to God the evils that man does of his own free will. I must concede you the Devil. God doesn't really need to punish us, Miss Barton. We're so busy punishing ourselves.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“In everybody's life there are hidden chapters which they hope may never be known.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“Where do one's fears come from? Where do they shape themselves? Where do they hide before coming out into the open?”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“There are questions that you don't ask because you're afraid of the answers to them.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“I never can stand seeing people pleased with themselves,” said Joanna. “It arouses all my worst instincts.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“Yes, it was dangerous, but we are not put into this world, Mr. Burton, to avoid danger when an important fellow creature's life is at stake. You understand me?”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“A man travels fastest who travels alone.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“If suicide is your idea of escape from trouble then it doesn't very much matter what the trouble is.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“How strange that a girl could trouble your inmost soul so long as she kept her mouth shut, and that the moment she spoke the glamour could vanish as though it had never been.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“From all I have heard, geniuses are people to be heartily disliked.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“... Good gracious, Jerry, you'll probably have to marry the girl.'

Joanna was half serious, half laughing.

It was at that moment that I made a very important discovery.

'Damn it all,' I said. 'I don't mind if I do. In fact - I should like it.'

A very funny expression came over Joanna's face. She got up and said dryly, as she went toward the door, 'Yes, I've known that for some time...'

She left me standing, glass in hand, aghast at my new discovery.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“Only cats and witches walk in the dark.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“Murder is a nasty business on an empty stomach.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“The trouble is, that this sort of things once it starts, grows.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“Things never burn when you want them to, they got out. You'd probably have had to strike match after match.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“It is a theory of mine," I said, warming to my theme, "that we owe most of our great inventions and most of the achievements of genius to idleness―either enforced or voluntary. The human mind prefers to be spoon-fed with the thoughts of others, but deprived of such nourishment it will, reluctantly, begin to think for itself―and such thinking, remember, is original thinking and may have valuable results.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“... go down to the country, take a house, get interested in local politics, in local scandal, in village gossip. Take an inquisitive and violent interest in your neighbours.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“The police, they're seemingly so frank, and they tell you nothing.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“I think there's something heavenly about numbers, anyway.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“The great thing in these cases is to keep an absolutely open mind. Most crimes, you see, are so absurdly simple.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“You mean you really want to marry me?" she asked with the air of one getting a thing perfectly clear.
"More than anything in the world," I said - and I meant it.
"You mean, you're in love with me?"
"I'm in love with you."
Her eyes were steady and grave. She said:
"I think you're the nicest person in the world - but I'm not in love with you." "I'll make you love me."
"That wouldn't do. I don't want to be made.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“Only mothers can’t say they don’t want their children and just go away.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“It was a cheap school, you know, and the teachers weren't very good. They could never answer questions properly."
"Very few teachers can," I{Jerry}said.
"Why not? They ought to."
I agreed.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“
- إن الكسل هو الخطيئة التي لا تغتفر
- لقد طرد السير إدوارد غري - الذي أصبح فيما بعد وزيرًا للخارجية - من جامعة أكسفورد بسبب كسله الذي لا سبيل لإصلاحه.
وسمعت أن دوق ويلنغتن كان غبيًا ومهملًا لواجباته الدراسية.
ثم ألم يخطر ببالك أنك ربما لم تكوني قادرة
على استقلال قطار سريع إلى لندن لو أن جورج ستيفنسن كان قدر خرج في نشاط شبابي بدل أن يتسكع سئٍمًا في مطبخ والدته حتى استرعى انتباهه الكسول الطريقة الغريبة التي يعلو ويهبط فيها غطاء

الإبريق على النار ، فكان ذلك بداية ابتكار القطار ؟
اكتفت إيمي بأن زفرت بتأفف، فيما قلت وأنا أتحمس لموضوعي:
إن لدي نظرية تقول إننا ندين بمعظم اختراعاتنا العظيمة ومعظم الإنجازات العبقرية إلى الكسل... الإجباري منه والطوعي.
إن العقل البشري يفضل أن يتغذى على أفكار الآخرين، ولكنه عندما يُحرم من هذا الغذاء فإنه سيبدأ كارهًا في التفكير لذاته... وتذكري إن مثل هذا التفكير هو تفكير إبداعي وقد يؤدي إلى نتائج قيمة .

... وفوق ذلك فهناك الجانب الفني .
نهضتُ وأخذت من مكتبي صورة كانت تلازمني دائمًأ لمنظر صيني مفضل عندي. كانت تمثل رجلًا عجوزًا يجلس تحت شجرة ويسلي نفسه بتلك اللعبة القديمة التي يشبك الأطفال فيها خيوطًا بين أصابعهم

حتى يؤلفوا منها شكلًا هندسيًا. أحضرت الصورة وقلتُ لها: كانت في المعرض الصيني، وقد سحرتني، اسمحي لي أن أريك إياها. إنها تدعى " رجل عجوز يستمتع بمتعة الكسل ”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“I'm afraid I always find Shakespeare terribly dreary. All those long scenes where everybody is drunk and it's supposed to be funny.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“And anyway, a man has no business to let himself be made a fool of by a woman. It’s his own look out if he does.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“You may say that I had gone to ask Megan to marry me in an absurdly complacent frame of mind and that I deserved what I got - but it was not really like that. It was because I felt so assured, so certain, that Megan belonged to me - that she was my business, that to look after her and make her happy and keep her from harm was the only natural right way of life for me, that I had expected her to feel, too - that she and I belonged to each other.
But I was not giving up. Oh, no! Megan was my woman and I was going to have her.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“What's wrong with Shakespeare?" I{Jerry} inquired in interest.
" Twisting himself up to say things in such a difficult way that you can't get at what he means. Still, I like some Shakespeare.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

“Kebencian bisa membuat orang jadi buta-- ya jadi buta. Tapi orang buta pun mungkin bisa menikam tepat di jantung.”
― Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger