Some attribute had departed from her, the permanence of which had been essential to keep her a woman. Such is frequently the fate, and such the stern development, of the feminine character and person, when the woman has encountered, and lived through, an experience of peculiar severity. If she be all tenderness, she will die. If she survive, the tenderness will either be crushed out of her, or–and the outward semblance is the same–crushed so deeply into her heart that it can never show itself more. . Nathaniel Hawthorne
About This Quote

This quote talks about how some women have to put up with certain things in life, but once they have done so, they are not the same person anymore. This woman has gone through a very tough time and she is changed forever. She may be all tenderness now, but if she survives the ordeal, she will either be crushed into being completely different, or she will be crushed into being the same person that she was before.

Source: The Scarlet Letter

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