How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph) or (Part.Paragraph)
Quote #1
Briony was hardly to know it then, but this was the project's highest point of fulfillment. Nothing came near it for satisfaction, all else was dreams and frustration. There were moments in the summer dusk after her light was out, when she burrowed in the delicious gloom of her canopy bed, and made her heart thud with luminous, yearning fantasies, little playlets in themselves, every one of which featured Leon. (1.1, 3)
The first thing we learn at the beginning of the book is that Briony is writing a play. Just about the next thing we learn is that the production isn't going to live up to her hopes. This is a subtle signal that… life is filled with disappointment and despair.
Quote #2
But hidden drawers, lockable diaries and cryptographic systems could not conceal from Briony the simple truth: she had no secrets. Her wish for a harmonious, organized world denied her the reckless possibilities of wrongdoing. (1.1.6)
Briony is a big old neat freak. You don't often think of neatness as a kind of hope or plan—but this quote suggests that maybe it is. Briony wants—or hopes or dreams for—a world with all the beds made and all the dishes washed. Which puts limits on what she can do, and also results in some horrible messes.