How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
He patted me and praised me very much; he told Lord George that he was sure the horse knew of Annie's danger as well as he did. "I could not have held him in if I would," said he. "She ought never to ride any other horse." (24.31)
Here's another example of Beauty understanding a human situation and even making it clear to the human riding him. When Lady Anne's horse runs away with her, Beauty chases after, hoping to save her. His rider explains that it seems like Beauty totally understood—and of course he did. You know that old saying, "actions speak louder than words"? Here it is in action.
Quote #8
"Dumb beasts!" Yes, we are, but if I could have spoken, I could have told my master where his oats went to. (30.10)
Even though Beauty manages to communicate very well with people most of the time, here we see a horse's limitations in communication. When Beauty witnesses a groom stealing oats, there's no good way for him to express that he knows who the thief is. He can't just run for help this time, unfortunately.
Quote #9
"We call them dumb animals, and so they are, for they cannot tell us how they feel, but they do not suffer less because they have no words." (46.21)
As Beauty is suffering during the worst time of his life, a kind woman stops his driver and points out this crucial theme of the novel: Animals still feel things and suffer, even though they can't speak. Anna Sewell wants us to remember, no matter what, that we should pay attention to animals because they might be trying to tell us something.