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The old woman takes care of Inman after he’s wounded by the Home Guard. She’s calm, knowledgeable, and seemingly completely comfortable living in solitude. Yet she engages Inman in conversation when he stays with her, suggesting that she still craves some human contact, despite her protestations to the contrary. The old woman gives Inman powerful medicines that help him recover quickly and return to his quest to return to Black Cove with new enthusiasm. As such, Inman’s return would be impossible without the old woman’s help.
The Old Woman Quotes in Cold Mountain
The Cold Mountain quotes below are all either spoken by The Old Woman or refer to The Old Woman. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 11 Quotes
—What is it you do in those books? Inman said.
—I make a record, the woman said. Draw pictures and write.
—About what?
—Everything. The goats. Plants. Weather. I keep track of what everything's up to. It can take up all your time just marking down what happens. Miss a day and you get behind and might never catch back up.
—How did you learn to write and read and draw? Inman asked.
—Same way you did. Somebody taught me.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
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The Old Woman Character Timeline in Cold Mountain
The timeline below shows where the character The Old Woman appears in Cold Mountain. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 11: the doing of it
...only sign of human civilization is the road itself. One day, he comes to an old woman setting up a trap for animals. The woman notices that Inman is wounded, and offers...
(full context)
The old woman takes Inman to her home, which is nearby. On the walk to her home, the...
(full context)
Inman and the old woman sit down to dinner. The woman asks Inman if he’s come from “killing men in...
(full context)
It’s now Inman’s turn to tell the old woman about himself. He tells the woman about his neck wound—he received it while fighting with...
(full context)
The old woman gives Inman a strange ball, made of herbs, and tells him to swallow it. Inman...
(full context)
The old woman shows Inman her papers—she writes and draws pictures all day long. She claims that she’s...
(full context)
The old woman walks into the house and greets Inman. Inman tells the woman that he needs to...
(full context)
