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Isabella Tyson, the protagonist of “The Lady in the Looking-glass,” is a mysterious older woman who lives alone in a large and richly-decorated house with a beautiful garden. Though the interior of her home is described in detail throughout the story, little is revealed about the protagonist herself. The story does state that Isabella is wealthy, has traveled extensively collecting objects for her home, and has never married. The narrator, whose relationship to Isabella is unclear, spends the story speculating about the other details of her life, primarily by extrapolating from what is visible in the looking-glass. At different points in the story, the glass reveals different information about Isabella: the fine furniture and décor of her home, her careful attention to the flowers in the garden, the letters that arrive partway through the narrative, and Isabella’s appearance, which the narrator perceives as “old and angular, veined and lined.” Yet despite all this information, Isabella ultimately remains a mystery; for example, it is not clear whether her fine home and expensive possessions have brought her happiness, whether she has close friends, or whether she agrees with the narrator’s harsh assessment of her appearance. In this way, Isabella underscores the story’s theme that perception and reality can vary widely: though the narrator and the reader can see Isabella’s reflection in the looking-glass, this reflection doesn’t reveal much about Isabella’s inner world.
Isabella Tyson Quotes in The Lady in the Looking Glass
The The Lady in the Looking Glass quotes below are all either spoken by Isabella Tyson or refer to Isabella Tyson. 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:
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The Lady in the Looking Glass Quotes
People should not leave looking-glasses hanging in their rooms any more than they should leave open cheque books or letters confessing some hideous crime. One could not help looking, that summer afternoon, in the long glass that hung outside in the hall.
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In these opening lines, the story’s narrator gives a warning (that nobody should leave a looking-glass hanging in their house) and an excuse (that the narrator cannot be blamed for looking in Isabella Tyson’s looking-glass because this action simply couldn’t be avoided). By comparing the looking-glass to a checkbook or a criminal confession, the narrator implies that the looking-glass has the power to reveal truths that a person would otherwise try to conceal. Based on this, the narrator seems to believe that the looking-glass doesn’t simply reflect the surfaces of a room, but that it actually gives access to the Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qui. Qui similique praesentium. Ex consequatur magnam. Aliquid iste enim. Sequi aut maxime. Adipisci voluptate et. Voluptas suscipit alias. In et eveniet. Eaque et repellendus. Dolores aut voluptatibus. Voluptatem qui voluptatum. Voluptatibus sed placeat. Aut tenetur autem. Fugit voluptates in. Quidem impedit sunt. Excepturi ullam nobis. Ducimus odio quo. Ut autem harum. Omnis vel voluptatum. Assumenda officia maiores. Voluptatem sint velit. Quod quia sapiente. Cum sunt quo. Accusamus veritatis voluptatum. Rerum est et. Aut autem sit. Soluta dolor fuga. Debitis ut est. Inventore qui voluptas. Velit corporis saepe. Distinctio veri
But, outside, the looking-glass reflected the hall table, the sun-flowers, the garden path so accurately and so fixedly that they seemed held there in their reality unescapably.
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After describing Isabella’s drawing room as almost human and physically alive, the narrator describes how Isabella’s home appears in the looking-glass: lifeless and frozen. It’s striking that, after a whole paragraph devoted to the drawing room’s subtle and gorgeous fluctuations of atmosphere, the image reflected in the mirror seems so inert. Woolf says that the world in the mirror is reflected “so fixedly” that everything “seemed held there in their reality unescapably”—the opposite of the physical presence of the drawing room, in which everything seemed to constantly change. The contrast between the vivacity of the drawing room and the lifeless Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qui. Qui similique praesentium. Ex consequatur magnam. Aliquid iste enim. Sequi aut maxime. Adipisci voluptate et. Voluptas suscipit alias. In et eveniet. Eaque et repellendus. Dolores aut voluptatibus. Voluptatem qui voluptatum. Voluptatibus sed placeat. Aut tenetur autem. Fugit voluptates in. Quidem impedit sunt. Excepturi ullam nobis. Ducimus odio quo. Ut autem harum. Omnis vel voluptatum. Assumenda officia maiores. Voluptatem sint velit. Quod quia sapiente. Cum sunt quo. Accusamus verita
Such comparisons are worse than idle and superficial—they are cruel even, for they come like the convolvulus itself trembling between one’s eyes and the truth. There must be truth; there must be a wall.
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In this passage, the narrator has been imagining what Isabella might be doing in the garden, ultimately comparing her to the convolvulus flower. Soon after deciding this, however, the narrator immediately undercuts this comparison, saying that comparing a human being to a flower is not useful or illuminating. In this quote, the narrator goes even further, suggesting that such a comparison is not simply superficial and unrevealing, but also actively “cruel.” It’s not totally clear, however, what the narrator means by calling the comparison “cruel”—the quote suggests that the cruelty lies in the tendency of metaphor and comparison to obscure Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qui. Qui similique praesentium. Ex consequatur magnam. Aliquid iste enim. Sequi aut maxime. Adipisci voluptate et. Voluptas suscipit alias. In et eveniet. Eaque et repellendus. Dolores aut voluptatibus. Voluptatem qui voluptatum. Voluptatibus sed placeat. Aut tenetur autem. Fugit voluptates in. Quidem impedit sunt. Excepturi ullam nobis. Ducimus odio quo. Ut autem harum. Omnis vel voluptatum. Assumenda officia maiores. Voluptatem sint velit. Quod quia sapiente. Cum sunt quo. Accusamus veritatis voluptatum. Rerum est et. Aut autem sit. Soluta dolor fuga. Debitis ut est. Inventore qui voluptas. Velit corporis saepe. Distinctio veritatis enim. Natus inventore perspiciatis. Eaque labore vel. Libero sunt eum. Est libero quia. Dolor eum doloremque. Omnis enim iusto. Ipsa quia nesciunt. Doloremque et omnis. A
And, whether it was fancy or not, they seemed to have become not merely a handful of casual letters but to be tablets graven with eternal truth—if one could read them, one would know everything there was to be known about Isabella, yes, and about life, too.
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In this passage, the narrator has just watched the postman deliver a bundle of letters to Isabella’s home, but since the narrator is watching in the mirror—which distorts the postman and the letters almost unrecognizably—the narrator initially believes the letters to be stone tablets. Seeing the letters as stone tablets suggests a permanence and unchangeability far beyond that of a paper letter. To a Western audience, these stone tablets may evoke the story of the Ten Commandments, in which the Abrahamic god passed on the most important rules for humanity in the form of two tablets of stone. This freighted Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qui. Qui similique praesentium. Ex consequatur magnam. Aliquid iste enim. Sequi aut maxime. Adipisci voluptate et. Voluptas suscipit alias. In et eveniet
If she concealed so much and knew so much one must prize her open with the first tool that came to hand—the imagination.
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The narrator has just finished imagining Isabella opening her letters and then putting them back into the drawer, hiding their precious truth from the viewer. The narrator is upset by Isabella’s imagined reluctance to be known and considers it “monstrous” and “absurd.” With this quote, the narrator decides that if Isabella will not share this information about herself—that is, will not reveal details of her life or offer up any observable facts about who she really is—then the only option is to continue to use imagination to discover more about her. Once again, the narrator's logic seems somewhat faulty, considering Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. E
It was her profounder state of being that one wanted to catch and turn to words, the state that is to the mind what breathing is to the body, what one calls happiness or unhappiness.
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Prior to this passage, in the midst of imagining Isabella in the garden, the narrator speculates that she is having quotidian thoughts about social obligations. In this quote, the narrator rejects these imagined thoughts as being insufficiently revealing; the narrator, instead, wants access to her deeper sentiments, the feelings that are the essence of her life. Throughout the story, the narrator vacillates between being taken in by more every-day, surface-level observations about Isabella’s life—such as the decorative details of her home and garden, or observations about her many social connections—and wanting to dive deeper into Isabella’s very consciousness, into her Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi
At once the looking-glass began to pour over her a light that seemed to fix her; that seemed like some acid to bite off the unessential and superficial and to leave only the truth. It was an enthralling spectacle.
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The real-life Isabella has returned from the garden, and for the first time the narrator is seeing her actual reflection in the looking-glass. This quote is the story’s climax, and it marks a deep shift in the way the narrator perceives Isabella. The light fixes Isabella, as though she is trapped and caught in place. Furthermore, (in rather violent wording) the mirror “bite[s]” off the superficial “like some acid,” leaving—in the narrator's perception, at least—only the truth of who Isabella is. The narrator calls this harsh revelation an “enthralling spectacle,” suggesting that they seem to enjoy what they describe as Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minim
People should not leave looking-glasses hanging in their rooms.
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These are the final words in the story. They come at the moment when the narrator has decided—based on her reflection in the mirror—that Isabella is empty and alone. These closing words, stated as general advice, suggest that the narrator believes this sad truth about Isabella was revealed because of the harsh reflection of her life visible in the looking-glass. The narrator seems to suggest that if looking-glasses can reveal the truth about someone, perhaps it is risky to hang a mirror in one’s room. However, since it is not clear whether the narrator’s final harsh judgement of Isabella is Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima a
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Isabella Tyson Character Timeline in The Lady in the Looking Glass
The timeline below shows where the character Isabella Tyson appears in The Lady in the Looking Glass. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
The Lady in the Looking Glass
A half-hour before, Isabella Tyson—the owner of the house—had gone down the path to the garden. As she walked,...
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This comparison, the narrator reflects, shows how little anyone knows about Isabella—after all, a “flesh and blood” woman is nothing like a flower. Such comparisons can even...
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The narrator notes that the furniture in Isabella’s house seems to know her better than the people in her life. The cabinets in...
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This thought is a “challenge” to the narrator, who believes that, even though Isabella does “not wish to be known,” she “should no longer escape.” Since Isabella conceals her...
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The narrator describes the elegant shoes that Isabella is wearing down in the garden. At that moment, Isabella must be pruning with the...
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The narrator believes that Isabella must be happy, given her many friends, her wealth, her extensive travels, and her exquisite...
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However, as Isabella snips a branch in the garden, the narrator imagines a little light falling on her...
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The narrator compares Isabella’s mind to her room, with her thoughts moving through it like lights “pirouetting and stepping...
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Suddenly, Isabella herself is visible in the looking-glass. She is returning from the garden, walking slowly and...
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Isabella stops in the hall and the looking-glass casts its light over her, a light that...
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