was published in 1958 and turned into an iconic movie in 1961, starring Audrey Hepburn. In this novella, author tracks the life of Holly Golightly in New York City in the 1940s. She is a charming, enigmatic young woman living off the generosity of wealthy men. The story is told by an unnamed narrator, a young writer infatuated with Holly. She affectionately calls him Fred, as he resembles her brother. Through his eyes, the narrative captures Holly's complex personality and interactions with friends and suitors in Manhattan's social scene. These characters include Holly's roommate, Mag Wildwood, the bartender Joe Bell, and others. Holly's past and her free-spirited lifestyle are central to the plot, as she navigates relationships and ambitions with vulnerability and detachment.
Holly's character, an emblem of independence and resilience, resonates with contemporary themes of self-discovery and the quest for meaning beyond traditional roles and relationships. Below are 30+ delightful and insightful quotes from Breakfast at Tiffany's.
The best Breakfast at Tiffany's quotes on self-discovery and self-acceptance
"I am always drawn back to places where I have lived, the houses and their neighborhoods."
"I don't want to own anything until I know I've found the place where me and things belong together. I'm not quite sure where that is just yet. But I know what it's like."
"I'm very scared, Buster. Yes, at last. Because it could go on forever. Not knowing what's yours until you've thrown it away."
"You call yourself a free spirit, a 'wild thing,' and you're terrified somebody's gonna stick you in a cage."
"Maybe the older you grow and the less easy it is to put thought into action, maybe that's why it gets all locked up in your head and becomes a burden."
"The average personality re-shapes frequently, every few years even our bodies undergo a complete overhaul-desirable or not, it is a natural thing that we should change."
The best Breakfast at Tiffany's quotes on love and relationships
"Anyone who ever gave you confidence, you owe them a lot."
"I loved her enough to forget myself, my self pitying despairs, and be content that something she thought happy was going to happen."
"I told you: you can make yourself love anybody."
"Love should be allowed. I'm all for it. Now that I've got a pretty good idea what it is."
"Never love a wild thing.”
"We don't belong to each other: he's an independent, and so am I."
"You can love somebody without it being like that. You keep them a stranger, a stranger who's a friend."
"You're wonderful. Unique. I love you."
The best Breakfast at Tiffany's quotes on life and human nature
"Don't wanna sleep, don't wanna die, just wanna go a-travellin' through the pastures of the sky."
"Good luck and believe me, dearest Doc–it's better to look at the sky than live there. Such an empty place; so vague. Just a country where the thunder goes and things disappear."
"I'll never get used to anything. Anybody that does they might as well be dead."
"It may be normal, darling; but I'd rather be natural."
"'Everybody has to feel superior to somebody,' she said. 'But it's customary to present a little proof before you take the privilege.'"
"The answer is good things only happen to you if you're good."
"Be anything but a coward, a pretender, an emotional crook, a whore: I'd rather have cancer than a dishonest heart."
"I don't want to own anything until I find a place where me and things go together."
"Home is where you feel at home."
The best Breakfast at Tiffany's quotes to make you think and laugh
"But it's Sunday, Mr. Bell. Clocks are slow on Sundays."
"It should take you about four seconds to walk from here to the door. I'll give you two."
"Leave it to me: I'm always top banana in the shock department."
"Would you reach in the drawer there and give me my purse. A girl doesn't read this sort of thing without her lipstick."
"You're wrong. She is a phony. But on the other hand you're right. She isn't a phony because she's a real phony. She believes all this crap she believes. You can't talk her out of it."
"Reading dreams. That's what started her walking down the road. Every day she'd walk a little further: a mile, and come home. Two miles, and come home. One day she just kept on."
"Aprils have never meant much to me, autumns seem that season of beginning, spring."
"Dizzy with excitement is no mere phrase."