You must give me leave to judge for myself, and pay me the compliment of believing what I say.
– Jane Austen
Pride and Prejudice, Chapter 19. When Elizabeth rejects Mr. Collins’s proposal, he doesn’t accept that it’s a refusal and indicates that he will persist a second and even third time until she says "yes." She firmly and swiftly rejects this attempt to control how she should think and dictate the decisions of her heart. The fuller quote is: "Indeed, Mr. Collins, all praise of me will be unnecessary. You must give me leave to judge for myself, and pay me the compliment of believing what I say. I wish you very happy and very rich, and by refusing your hand, do all in my power to prevent your being otherwise."