Mary Maclane Quotes

Powerful Mary Maclane for Daily Growth

About Mary Maclane

Mary Maclane (1882-1929), an American autobiographical writer, was born on August 6, 1882, in Butte, Montana, to Irish immigrants John and Elizabeth McLane. Known for her raw, poetic prose, she led a tumultuous life that significantly influenced her writing. Mary's childhood was marked by poverty, parental neglect, and abuse, as her father abandoned the family when she was young, and her mother struggled with alcoholism. This tumultuous upbringing provided the foundation for her later work, which was characterized by emotional honesty and a stark portrayal of her experiences. At age 15, Maclane married her first cousin, Jim Stothart, and bore him a son, William (known as Willie). The marriage was fraught with domestic violence, which led to Mary's eventual abandonment of both her husband and child. She moved frequently across the United States, working various jobs and experiencing a succession of failed relationships and emotional hardships. In 1902, Maclane began writing under the pseudonym "Jane Manning," publishing short stories and poetry in popular magazines. However, it was her autobiographical novel, "A Woman of Affairs" (1918), that brought her recognition. The book, which detailed her tumultuous personal life, including her promiscuity and numerous abortions, shocked and intrigued readers with its honesty and raw emotionality. Maclane continued to write and publish throughout the 1920s, but her lifestyle took a toll on her health. She died in 1929 at age 46, leaving behind a body of work that remains significant for its frank portrayal of female sexuality and emotional turmoil. Her life and writing have been compared to that of Edna St. Vincent Millay, another pioneering woman writer of the time.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"I am a woman and my mind is a man."

This quote suggests that Mary Maclane, despite being a woman, possesses intellectual abilities traditionally associated with men. In essence, it indicates her strength of character, wisdom, and intelligence, which transcend societal gender norms. It's a powerful statement about self-empowerment and the assertion of one's intellectual capabilities.


"Every man I meet wants me or needs me, if I let him do either."

This quote suggests that the speaker feels that men in her life desire a romantic or intimate relationship with her (want her), or see her as someone they can rely upon for support or assistance (need her). The underlying implication is that she has the power to choose whether to engage in these relationships, implying a level of independence and self-control. The quote also hints at an awareness of the attention and demands she receives from men, possibly indicating both attraction and pressure, which she may manage with discretion.


"I am not wicked, I am Real."

This quote by Mary Maclane suggests a rejection of societal labels or perceptions that might label her as "wicked" due to her unconventional behavior or circumstances. Instead, she affirms her authenticity and individuality by stating "I am Real". In essence, the quote emphasizes self-acceptance, truthfulness, and a refusal to conform to expectations that may not align with one's true nature.


"A man's love is in proportion to his fear."

This quote by Mary Maclane suggests that a person's level of affection towards another can be correlated with the degree of fear they harbor in the relationship. In other words, if one has significant apprehensions or fears about losing someone they care for deeply, it might reflect a stronger emotional bond. The fear could stem from various reasons such as vulnerability, attachment, or even fear of rejection. However, it's essential to recognize that this fear-love connection is not universally true, and the complexity of human emotions often transcends simple correlations.


"If a man could be crossed with the aid of a little chloroform, every woman would have two husbands."

This quote by Mary Maclane suggests a desire for equal partnership and companionship among men and women, as if one man is not enough to fulfill all emotional and social needs of a woman, she wishes for a second companion, just as men often have multiple male friends or peers. The use of "chloroform" humorously implies that such an arrangement could be achieved with the help of a mild sedative, making it seem more feasible and less threatening.


I want to write such things as compel the admiring acclamation of the world at large, such things as are written but once in years, things subtle but distinctly different from the books written every day.

- Mary MacLane

Every Day, Want, Large, Admiring

I never give my real self. I have a hundred sides, and I turn first one way and then the other. I am playing a deep game. I have a number of strong cards up my sleeve. I have never been myself, excepting to two friends.

- Mary MacLane

Deep, Other, Hundred, Real Self

When I was three years old I was taken with my family to a little town in Western Minnesota, where I lived a more or less vapid and ordinary life until I was ten.

- Mary MacLane

Old, More, Town, Little Town

The book, you understand, was not written for publication. It was the portrayal of my emotions, the analysis of my own soul life during three months of my nineteenth year. I wrote then all the time, just as I do now, but, though the book is in diary form, it is not a diary.

- Mary MacLane

Book, Soul, Year, Portrayal

Fame is indeed beautiful and benign and gentle and satisfying, but happiness is something at once tender and brilliant beyond all things.

- Mary MacLane

Tender, Brilliant, Indeed, Satisfying

Genius of a kind has always been with me; an empty heart that has taken on a certain wooden quality; an excellent, strong woman's body and a pitiably starved soul.

- Mary MacLane

Strong, Always, Been, Wooden

It is with pain that I read of the dire effects of my book upon the minds of young girls.

- Mary MacLane

Pain, Minds, Effects, Dire

Well, if I am not vulgar, neither is my book. I wrote myself. Suggestiveness is always vulgar. But truth never. My book is not even remotely suggestive. I call things by their names. That is all.

- Mary MacLane

Book, Always, Wrote, All Things

I have never read a line of Walt Whitman.

- Mary MacLane

Never, Read, Walt, Whitman

The world is like a little marsh filled with mint and white hawthorn.

- Mary MacLane

World, White, Like, Mint

You may think me crude, and probably I am crude, but I am not so crude as I was, for I am clever enough to see that the girl of nineteen who thought herself a genius was only an unusual girl writing her heart out.

- Mary MacLane

Thought, See, Out, Crude

I read of the Kalamazoo girl who killed herself after reading the book. I am not at all surprised. She lived in Kalamazoo, for one thing, and then she read the book.

- Mary MacLane

Book, One Thing, Read, Surprised

My intention to lecture is as vague as my intention is to go on the stage. I will never consider an offer to lecture, not because I despise the vocation, but because I have no desire to appear on the public rostrum.

- Mary MacLane

Desire, Will, Vague, No Desire

I am a genius. Then it amused me to keep saying so, but now it does not. I expected to be happy sometime. Now I know I shall never be.

- Mary MacLane

Happy, Expected, Sometime, Amused

I do not see any beauty in self-restraint.

- Mary MacLane

Beauty, See, Any, Self-Restraint

I do not sing nor play, but I adore music, particularly Chopin. I like him because I cannot understand him.

- Mary MacLane

Play, Like, Particularly, Chopin

Of poets I put Virgil first - he was greatest.

- Mary MacLane

First, He, Put, Poets

When I wrote my book I wanted to love someone. I wanted to be in love. Now I know that I shall never be in love - and I no longer wish to be.

- Mary MacLane

Love, Book, Wrote, To Love

Just why I sent it to the publishers would be hard to say, but when I had finished it I felt that it was literature, because it is real and because it was well written. And I know that the world wants such things.

- Mary MacLane

Why, Say, Felt, Such Things

Let me but make a beginning, let me but strike the world in a vulnerable spot, and I can take it by storm.

- Mary MacLane

Storm, World, Take, Vulnerable

There is really no right and wrong. I recognize no right and wrong.

- Mary MacLane

Right And Wrong, Right, Recognize

I want to live quietly.

- Mary MacLane

Live, Want, Quietly

I want fame more than I can tell. But more than I want fame I want happiness.

- Mary MacLane

Happiness, Want, More, Fame

I was born to be alone, and I always shall be; but now I want to be.

- Mary MacLane

Alone, Born, Always, I Was Born

I would rather be a fairly happy wife and mother.

- Mary MacLane

Mother, Rather, Would, Fairly

I love devils.

- Mary MacLane

Love, I Love, Devils

I've never made plans for more than a day ahead.

- Mary MacLane

Never, Plans, Made, Ahead

One must always say things that aim to interest, because in the world one must after all pay for one's keep.

- Mary MacLane

Say, Always, Pay, Aim

If you're searching for quotes on a different topic, feel free to browse our Topics page or explore a diverse collection of quotes from various Authors to find inspiration.