Only Children Quotes

“It's been my experience that only children never learn when to keep their fucking traps shut. An older brother would have beat that out of you.”
― Adrian McKinty, The Cold Cold Ground

“Jane Eyre. A strange child, difficult to love. A lonely, only child.”
― Gail Honeyman, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

“It is doubtful if any only child is to be envied, for the only child is bound to become introspective; having no one of its own ilk in whom to confide, it is apt to confide in itself. It cannot be said that at seven years old the mind is beset by serious problems, but nevertheless it is already groping, may already be subject to small fits of dejection, may already be struggling to get a grip on life—on the limited life of its surroundings. At seven there are miniature loves and hatreds, which, however, loom large and are extremely disconcerting. There may even be present a dim sense of frustration, and Stephen was often conscious of this sense, though she could not have put it into words. To cope with it, however, she would give way at times to sudden fits of hot temper, working herself up over everyday trifles that usually left her cold. It relieved her to stamp and then burst into tears at the first sign of opposition. After such outbursts she would feel much more cheerful, would find it almost easy to be docile and obedient. In some vague, childish way she had hit back at life, and this fact had restored her self-respect.”
― Radclyffe Hall, The Well of Loneliness

“Early on, I had contracted that dread affliction of oldest or only children -- I lived for the absolute approval of my parents.”
― Pat Conroy, The Lords of Discipline

“...Her upbringing as an only child had given her a low tolerance for bullshit and a high dose of self respect.”
― Erin Chack, This Is Really Happening

“Parents are funny things. As an only child, I studied them like apes in a zoo—their whims, habits, moods—and believed it was my duty to make them happy, There was no Child Number Two. Everything fell on me.”
― Christine Rice, Swarm Theory

“Dad has what I think of as only child darkside syndrome; he does everything as if he is being watched.”
― OYEYEMI HELEN

“Once in a while he brought the remaining egg up close to his nose and breathed on it huff huff. It looked lonely and important at the same time, which is often the case with only children.”
― Krystelle Bamford, Idle Grounds