In Lawrence Durrell's The Alexandria Quartet, Clea makes a provocative statement about women's roles, suggesting that there are only three ways to relate to a woman: loving her, suffering because of her, or turning her into a subject for literary creation. This reflects a certain view of women's place in the emotional and artistic landscape as perceived through the characters' perspectives in the novel.

Durrell's quote highlights the complex and often romanticized notions of love and suffering associated with women, emphasizing how women can become central to emotional experiences or artistic inspiration. It invites readers to consider the ways in which women are integrated into personal and creative narratives, sometimes reducing their roles to mere themes for love or suffering.