"Brought up to respect the conventions, love had to end in marriage. I'm afraid it did"

This quote by Bette Davis talks to the traditional expectations of love and marital relationship in the past. It recommends that due to the conventions of the time, love was expected to end in marriage. This indicates that the speaker was raised in a society where marriage was seen as the only appropriate outcome of a romantic relationship. The speaker's use of the expression "I hesitate it did" indicates that they were not always happy with the result, however felt obligated to follow the conventions of the time. This quote speaks with the idea that in the past, love was typically viewed as something that had to be controlled and controlled by society, instead of something that might be freely revealed. It also recommends that the speaker may have felt trapped by the expectations of their society, and that they were unable to pursue a relationship that was genuinely satisfying.