willfulness Quotes

“Vocation does not come from willfulness. It comes from listening. I must listen to my life and try to understand what it is truly about-quite apart from what I would like it to be about-or my life will never represent anything real in the world, no matter how earnest my intentions.”

“How did she differ? What was the spirit in her, the essential thing, by which, had you found a crumpled glove in the corner of a sofa, you would have known it, from its twisted finger, hers indisputably? She was like a bird for speed, an arrow for directness. She was willful; she was commanding”

“Oh, yes, willful was what I wanted to be. Utterly willful. A willful girl was like a hen that crowed: something special.”

Many universal themes are addressed in this little book. Willfulness is mentioned first because I think it ties with the ending theme of original sin (which is a story about willfulness.) The child attempts to determine if she is a willful child, the cat confirms that she is. The child then concludes “willful is what I want to be… something special.”

Equating willfulness with being special, the child then confronts other themes of life such as eternity and loneliness. The cat declares that he is immortal. The girl concludes that they are both willful. As the girl identifies with the cat they discuss some of life’s themes. Loneliness is seen in the mailman and dog. The girl attempts to show empathy, but the cat will have none of that. He does not show compassion and is irritated that the girl will not follow his lead in being pitiless.