How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
When I was young I was taken to a place where those cruel things were done. I was tied up and made fast so that I could not stir, and then they came and cut off my long, beautiful tail, through the flesh and through the bone, and took it away. (10.3)
This vivid image comes from Birtwick horse Sir Oliver's story—he tells the other Birtwick horses about the horror of having his tail docked as a colt. It's particularly effective because he actually includes the detail of cutting through flesh and bone. Ouch. This isn't the only time we'll learn about animal cruelty done just for fashion, either.
Quote #2
There was a dreadful sound before we got into our stalls: the shrieks of those poor horses that were left burning to death in the stable—it was very terrible and made both Ginger and me feel very bad! (16.20)
In this painful scene, the stable at the inn where Beauty and Ginger are staying catches fire, all due to a lit pipe left in the hayloft. This moment of carelessness causes the stable to go up in flames, and Beauty and Ginger are barely rescued in time. Unfortunately, two of the other horses are too afraid to leave and die in the fire. This detail of the dying horses' shrieks makes their pain super real.
Quote #3
When I returned from my work, my neck and chest were strained and painful, my mouth and tongue tender, and I felt worn and depressed. (23.12)
When Beauty is first forced to wear a bearing rein at Earlshall, he can't believe the suffering it causes. His descriptions of the physical suffering that horses endure when the bearing rein is used makes this practice seem outrageous. Does Beauty's experience make you angry?
Quote #4
What I suffered with that rein for four long months in my lady's carriage, it would be hard to describe, but I am quite sure that, had it lasted much longer, either my health or my temper would have given way. (23.12)
Yet more about the evil bearing rein—this thing is just horrible. Beauty goes into great detail about the pain horses go through because of this contraption. And remember, he can't do a freaking thing about it.
Quote #5
"[…] I say 'tis a mockery to tell a man that he must not overwork his horse, for when a beast is downright tired, there's nothing but the whip that will keep his legs a-going... you must put your wife and children before the horse." (39.7)
Seedy Sam is a London cabbie who lives a hard life, and his description of how difficult it is to make a living as a cabbie is both memorable and painful. He's criticized for overworking his horses, but here he explains that he has no choice. In this case, Sam's suffering has an effect on his horses as well: Sam's desperate for money to support his wife and kids, and so he has to keep his horses going even when it's painful for them.
Quote #6
"That is what they are doing, whipping and working with never one thought of what I suffer—they paid for me, and must get it out of me, they say." (40.5)
Ginger's story of suffering is perhaps the most powerful in the book. Sold to a series of owners who mistreat her, at last she ends up as a horse for hire, overworked and in pain. Here, she describes the attitude of her master who treats horses as expendable property that can be used up. Newsflash: Horses aren't disposable, like paper goods.
Quote #7
"I wish the end was come; I wish I was dead. I have seen dead horses, and I am sure they do not suffer pain. I wish I may drop down dead at my work, and not be sent off to the knacker's." (40.7)
Poor Ginger… Her confession to Beauty here is so painful. This description of pain and hardship is heartbreaking, and her wish for death as an escape from her life is downright depressing. Sadly, this isn't not the only time we hear a sentiment like this.
Quote #8
[…] the kindest thing he could do for the fine old fellow would be to put a sure bullet through his heart, and then he would never suffer more, for he did not know where to find a kind master for the rest of his days. (44.11)
Here's another example of death as a release from suffering, but in this case, it's not quite as wrenching as Ginger's story. When Captain is injured by a drunk carriage driver, his master, Jerry Barker, decides to shoot him rather than have to give him up to an uncertain fate. It's a kind, merciful choice—Jerry knows how badly horses can suffer if they fall into the wrong hands.
Quote #9
The pain of that great cart whip was sharp, but my mind was hurt quite as much as my poor sides. To be punished and abused when I was doing my very best was so hard it took the heart out of me. (46.4)
A horse's physical pain can feel so much worse when it goes hand-in-hand with cruel treatment. Beauty lets us know here that emotional pain can be just as bad as physical suffering, and it can also make everything seem hopeless.
Quote #10
My life was now so utterly wretched that I wished I might, like Ginger, drop down dead at my work, and be out of my misery […]. (47.5)
Beauty's descriptions of suffering come full circle when he reaches the limit of his own physical pain and exhaustion, just like his friend Ginger. Utterly overworked, it's not long before he drops while pulling a heavy load. He thinks of Ginger's fate, knowing how much she suffered near the end of her life, and wishes for an escape just like hers.