Memorable Passage

   "But the books are all behind bars!" she said. "It's like a literary sort of prison!"
   Will grinned. "Some of these books are dangerous," he said. "It's wise to be careful."
   "One must always be careful of books," said Tessa, "and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us."
   "I'm not sure a book has ever changed me," said Will. "Well, there is one volume that promises to teach one how to turn oneself into an entire flock of sheep-"
   "Only the very weak-minded refuse to be influenced by literature and poetry," said Tessa, determined not to let him run wildly off with the conversation.
   "Of course, why one would want to be an entire flock of sheep is another matter entirely," Will finished. "Is there something you want to read here, Miss Gray, or is there not? Name it, and I shall attempt to free it from it's prison for you." . . .
   "Well, I want novels," said Tessa. "Or poetry. Books are for reading, not for turning oneself into livestock."
   Will's eyes glittered. "I think we may have a copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland about somewhere."
   Tessa wrinkled her nose. "Oh, that's for little children, isn't it?" she said. "I never liked it much - seemed like so much nonsense."
   . . ."There's plenty of sense in nonsense sometimes, if you wish to look for it."

-The Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare



When I first read this book, I had to stop on this passage and read it again. I love everything about it. Despite the fact that this passage really defines the characters involved, the deeper meaning of it gets me every time. First of all, the books in the Great Library are all kept enclosed in cases, or, like Tessa describes, a "literary sort of prison." And just as Will offers to free a book from its prison for her, I believe a book is the result of an author freeing themselves of their ideas. They chase all their ideas like butterflies and trap them within the pages of a book, taking them out of their mind, and there the ideas wait until a reader comes along and frees them.

Will explains that the books are behind bars because some of them are dangerous, to which Tessa agrees. My favorite line is her words in that moment, which go far beyond books and sneak into our everyday lives: "...words have the power to change us" in so many ways. Bullying, hate, and judgement are words that change us, but also compliments and affirmations. Likewise, the words in a book can reform our thoughts, stretch our imagination, and influence our entire being.

I also very much enjoy the last line of this passage. Sometimes it seems our lives make no sense, but truly they do. Life can only be understood backwards, but must be lived forward, so the situations that we believe to be nonsense may actually be the ones that change us the most. Also, being that I love the story Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, I agree that nonsense has a deeper meaning than just nonsense. Maybe somewhere way down deep inside, the nonsense is actually what makes the most sense.