"Wives?" she asked, interrupting him. For a moment, he had assumed she was tuning to the novel. Then he saw her waiting, suspicious eyes, so he repli… - John le Carré

But gossip must see its characters
in black and white, equip them with
sins and motives easily conveyed in
the shorthand of conversation.

If they do not know what they want, how can they be so certain they are right?

It was from us they learnt the secret of life: that we grow old without growing wise. They realised that nothing happened when we grew up: no blinding light on the road to Damascus, no sudden feeling of maturity.