Anna Todd has left a mark on the minds of her readers through quotes that pierce deep into the mind and appease the soul. Anna Todd’s quotes have reflected intense desire, sad thoughts, feelings of love, and feelings of betrayal.
Betrayal
You ruined everything. You took something from me that wasn’t yours, Hardin. That was meant for someone who loved me, loved me truthfully. It was his, whoever he is, and you took that.
This quote is gotten from Anna Todd’s ‘After.’ After she left to find Hardin, Tessa discovers him with his friends and when she tries to confront him about his behaviour, she faces the greatest shock of her life; she had been used by Hardin. Not knowing what to do, Tessa freezes in her thoughts, with the moments she was with him reoccurring in her mind. Hardin, the one she cut got cut off from her mom for, the one she left her caring and loving boyfriend Noah for, and the one she gave everything she had, mind and body to; Tessa felt betrayed and in pain.
Trust
I somehow know it is the calm before the storm, but right now Hardin is my anchor. I just pray that he doesn’t pull me under.
In ‘After,’ Tessa truly loved Hardin like no one else. She loved him to the moon and gave her all to him. This quote shows to what extent her trust for Hardin reached. Though she trusted him, Tessa still had her doubts because she knew Hardin was the person who could let anyone down without remorse. The courage it took her to trust him shows to what extent Tessa cared for Hardin. This quote perfectly relates to young adults of today as Tessa’s realism on trusting Hardin reflects in today’s society.
The Thoughts We Never Listen To
I know this happiness that I feel isn’t going to last, and I feel like Cinderella, waiting for the clock to strike and end my blissful night.
Here Tessa for once agreed with a realistic thought she always knew was possible to date a person like Hardin. She knew with a character like the one Hardin had, cold, rude, and angry, there was always a chance, a large one, that Hardin would end up breaking her heart. Though she knew this, Tessa intentionally shrugged it off as nothing, but it later comes to bite her.
We All Strive To Be Perfect But Can Never Be
No one is truly innocent in this world, no one. The people who believe themselves to be perfect are the worst ones of all.
Quoted in Anna Todd’s second book, ‘After We Collided,’ this quote shows the imperfection in our lives. It agrees on one thing we always strive for but can never truly achieve as human beings; perfection. Throughout the book, the wave of realism counteracts the need for perfection, as we can see with Tessa and Hardin. Tessa always wanted perfection, from her love life to her career. However, she realized it was all a charade. We only strive to be perfect, but in the end, we can never be perfect.
Letting Go of The Past
Sometimes you just have to choose to let things go, to move on.
Also found in Anna Todd’s second book, this quote brings to light something difficult in every relationship and romance, letting go. Tessa got betrayed by Hardin in ‘After’ because she could not let go of him. She kept trying and pushing on, believing the love she had will last for the two of them. Due to her not being able to let go, Tessa paid the ultimate price, a price that broke her into a million pieces and left her unable to move on.
Hope
There’s always another day, there’s always a way to make up for the s**t you’ve done and the people you’ve hurt, and there is always someone who loves you, even when you feel like you’re completely alone and you’re just out there floating along, waiting for the next disappointment. There is always something better to come.
This quote is from Anna Todd’s fourth book, ‘After Ever Happy’ and it gives hope in the face of intense adversity. Though Tessa and Hardin’s romance was not all rosy and red, they still had hope, hope that there were better days to come, hope that took them through the trying times, and hope that made them have their ‘After Ever Happy.’
The Unpredictability of Life
The order of the steps isn’t important. Either way, we end up in the same place.
This quote describes how life is randomized. ‘Nothing Less’ centres on the strife to find love and the strive to choose between what the heart wants and what the heart gets.
What We See Is Not What It Always Is
I have come to learn that the people who pretend to care the least care the most.
This quote explains that love is not what we perceive of others, but it is their actions and feelings towards us. ‘After We Fell’ is the third book in the ‘After’ series, and it imbibes many emotional rollercoasters. One thing we see throughout the book is Hardin trying to show Tessa how much he loves her, though he finds it hard to express that love.
The Harsh Reality of Life
Sometimes it’s faith that people hold on to. Sometimes, if you’re lucky enough, you can confide in someone else and trust them to pull you out of the pain before you dwell in it for too long. Pain is one of those hideous places that, once visited, you have to fight your way out, and even when you think you have escaped it, you find that it has permanently marked you. If you’re like me, you don’t have anyone to depend on, no one to take your hand and assure you that you’ll make it through this hell. Instead, you have to lace up your boots, grab your hand, and pull yourself out.
This quote gives us the raw realism of how life throws everything at us. Tessa felt abandoned by everyone. She was all alone in a world that cared little about anyone. Having no family to go back to and no shoulder to lean on, Tessa knew she had to stop pitying herself and take on her challenges head-on.
The Intricate Nature of Pain
Pain . . . such a simple word, but so packed with meaning. I have come to learn that pain is the strongest emotion one can feel. Unlike every other emotion, it’s the only one every human being is guaranteed to feel at some point in their life, and there is no upside to pain, no positive aspect that can make you look at it from a different perspective . . . there’s only the overwhelming sensation of pain itself.
Tessa made this statement in pain. Tessa was so down she felt pain had to be the definition of our daily living. Here Tessa speaks on why pain rules as a predominant emotion.
