She stopped and listened to him and somehow his cheerful, friendly little whistle gave her a pleased feeling—even a disagreeable little girl may be lonely, and the big closed house and big bare moor and big bare gardens had made this one feel as if there was no one left in the world but herself.
This quote represents Mary's transition from her life in India, where she was constantly monitored by servants, to her new life in England where she is left to play on her own. The vastness of her space to roam initially frightens Mary, who has never before had to use her imagination. The voice of the robin is what makes Mary start to shed her disagreeable behavior and open up to the vibrance of life around her, helping her to realize she is never truly alone.
Mary had worn her contrary scowl for an hour after that, but it made her think several entirely new things.
This moment comes after Martha points out that Mary is much too old to be dressed by a servant. Martha has compared Mary to her own 4-year-old sister, Susan Ann, who she says can already dress herself. This blunt honesty first provokes Mary to fall into her typical irritation, yet the truth of Martha's statement can't be ignored. Thus we see a turning point where Mary is slowly starting to see her faults and become a better person.
What an unhappy face he had! His black eyes seemed as if they scarcely saw her, as if they were seeing something else, and he could hardly keep his thoughts upon her.
Mary makes an astute observation of her uncle at their first meeting. Her description of his face expresses the grief he carries deep within himself, and that makes it almost impossible for him to connect with other people. That Archibald does not fully see his niece seated in front of him speaks to how his focus is still mostly in the past.
When new beautiful thoughts began to push out the old hideous ones, life began to come back to him, his blood ran healthily through his veins and strength poured into him.
Here, the author creates a parallel between having a healthy mind and a healthy body, suggesting that if people constantly think of themselves as ill or crippled it will create poor health. Colin grew up surrounded by people always reinforcing his fragility. After meeting Mary and encountering the garden, he begins to make the connection between mind and matter, and becomes healthy and strong by the end of the story.
One of the strange things about living in the world is that it is only now and then one is quite sure one is going to live forever and ever and ever.
This statement at the beginning of Chapter 21 serves to elucidate the events of the last few chapters. Finally, Colin has worked up the courage to leave his bedroom and go out in the garden. There, he feels the elated sentiment of living forever, declaring that he will live forever. The author shows how the majesty of nature can inspire one to feel a brand new and immortal sense of self.
The Secret Garden was what Mary called it when she was thinking of it. She liked the name, and she liked still more the feeling that when its beautiful old walls shut her in no one knew where she was. It seemed almost like being shut out of the world in some fairy place. The few books she had read and liked had been fairy-story books, and she had read of secret gardens in some of the stories.
The first few chapters of The Secret Garden emphasize Mary's loneliness and boredom, especially when she moves to Misselthwaite Manor and must learn to amuse herself. When she finds the garden, she no longer feels the sense of isolation, feeling for the first time that she is in a magical place, full of life, where she may be alone but not lonely.
Eh! That sounds as if tha'd got wits enow. Tha'rt a Yorkshire lad for sure. An' tha'rt diggin', too. How'd tha' like to plant a bit o' somethin'? I can get thee a rose in a pot.
Ben Weatherstaff is amazed when he hears Colin talking in a Yorkshire accent. Ben, who is delighted at Colin's new health and interest in the secret garden, invites him to plant a rose. The rose was Mrs. Craven's favorite flower, and thus we see how Ben is making a kind gesture that honors the memory of Colin's mother.
Perhaps they are... Let them laugh.
Here, Dr. Craven is speaking to Mrs. Medlock about Colin and Mary. They are both perplexed by the children's strange new behavior: eating very little yet seemingly in high spirits, spending their time playing and laughing together. His declaration to let them laugh shows his own development as a character, where he has stopped trying to control his patient and rather lets him be free to heal and become a normal child.
Never thee stop believin' in th' Big Good Thing an' knowin' th' world's full of it-- an' call it what tha' likes. Tha' wert singin' to it when I come into th' garden.
Susan Sowerby, the mother of Dickon, equates magic with the great force of life, perhaps God. In her perspective, this central goodness is not bound by any name or definition but is something that everyone can perceive in their own way. Her statement here is an encouragement for the children to keep believing in magic, making her one of the rare adults who encourage them to embrace their natural wonder and awe for life.
What is it? I almost feel as if—I were alive!
In the last chapter of the book, Archibald Craven is suddenly and miraculously overcome with a renewed sense of optimism. After 10 years of mourning, this feeling comes as quite a surprise. It is ironic that what is most natural—the sensation of being alive—is so foreign to him. This marks the point where Mr. Craven starts to truly heal from his trauma.
