How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
The water inched up his legs, which were crossed and folded into the tub. He did recognize, albeit faintly, that he was too long, and too big, for this bathtub—he looked like a mostly grown person playing at being a kid. (1.1)
In the bath, Colin thinks about how he's already grown up but stuck in a kid's body. Doesn't that describe Colin all the time? He never acts like an adult, and he's so self-absorbed and moody that it's hard to think of him as one.
Quote #2
"A road trip," Colin said. He had an overstuffed duffel bag at his feet and a backpack stretched taut, which contained only books. He and Hassan were sitting on a black leather couch. Colin's parents sat across from them on an identical couch. Colin's mother shook her head rhythmically, like a disapproving metronome.
"To where?" she asked. "And why?" (3.1-2)
Cue the eye roll. Parents can be so parental sometimes. And, of course, Colin's mom's concerns aren't shared by Colin and Hassan. They don't want to answer these practical and responsible questions—they just want to roam free and have fun.
Quote #3
"No offense, Mrs. Singleton," Hassan said, putting his feet up on the coffee table (which you were not allowed to do), "but you're sort of missing the point. There is no where or why." (3.1)
Irony, anyone? There's a contrast here between (1) what Hassan says and (2) what Hassan does. He's saying that they should be allowed to go off wherever and whenever they want because they're adults, but what he does is break the rules (by putting his feet on the table) and act immature. We're pretty sure both of those are frowned upon in adult-land.
Quote #4
Maybe we don't need to see the Archduke," said Hassan. "We're on a road trip. It's about adventure," Colin mimicked. (5.25)
Colin wants to get away, but once he and Hassan are away, he doesn't want to stop anywhere or do anything. Then comes the Archduke. This is the first time Colin is even remotely interested in moving on with his life and doing something other than act like a bratty teen.
Quote #5
You're just—you spend all your time worrying about losing your edge or getting dumped or whatever and you're never for a second grateful. You're the valedictorian. You're going to a great school next year, for free. So maybe you're not a child prodigy. That's good. At least you're not a child anymore. Or, you're not supposed to be, anyway. (5.80)
Ouch. Translation: You don't act like an adult, Colin. We hate it say it, but Katherine's right—growing up is about more than reaching the big 1-8. It's about acting mature and making good decisions, but Colin can't go seven seconds without checking in with Katherine because he's so childish.
Quote #6
Like, the other day, I told Hassan I wanted to matter—like, be remembered. And he said, 'famous is the new popular.' Maybe he's right, and maybe I just want to be famous. I was thinking about this tonight, actually, that maybe I want strangers to think I'm cool since people who actually know me don't. (7.83)
It's with Lindsey that Colin starts reflecting on himself and what he wants, and he tells her here that he wants to matter and make a difference in the world. If that's not grown-up thinking, we don't know what is.
Quote #7
Colin sighed. He knew he couldn't tell stories, that he always included extraneous details and tangents that interested only him. "Anyway, the end of that story is that I came relatively close to having a lion bite off my penis. And my point was that s*** like that never happens to popular people. Ever." (7.84)
Say what? Colin can't tell a story to save his life. If you think about it, even kids can tell stories to their friends… but Colin never had any friends, and he doesn't know how to behave with people. Bit by bit, Lindsey helps him learn how to tell stories, and what to say to people.
Quote #8
Colin liked the movie pretty well; he laughed a lot, anyway, and he found comfort in a world where all the characters who had been smart children grew up to be really fascinating, unique adults (even if they were all s crewed up). (8.87)
It's no coincidence that Colin feels comforted by The Royal Tenenbaums— he likes the fact that weirdos in childhood can turn out fine in adulthood. He's just not sure if he's going to join that club yet, or stay a child prodigy for the rest of his life.
Quote #9
He knew that his mom wanted him to have an adventure. She'd always wished he could be a normal kid. Colin suspected she'd be secretly pleased if he came home one night at three in the morning reeking of booze, because that would be normal. Normal kids come home late; normal kids drink warm forties of malt liquor in alleys with their friends (normal kids have more than one friend). His father wanted Colin to transcend all that stuff, but maybe even he was starting to see the unlikelihood of Colin ever becoming extraordinary. (9.87)
That's a lot of pressure for Colin. How is a kid supposed to choose which path to follow?
Quote #10
And I'm a not-doer. Like, I'm lazy, but I'm also good at not-doing things I'm not supposed to do. I never drank or did drugs or hooked up with girls or beat people up or stole or anything. I was always good at that, although not so much this particular summer. But then doing all that stuff here felt weird and wrong, so now I'm back to happily not-doing. But I've never been a doer. I never did anything that helped anybody. (18.58)
Leave it to Hassan to sum up his character better than anybody else. He knows he's not out there doin' stuff that matters (like Colin wants to), and for most of the novel, he couldn't care less about this fact. It's in this moment we see that he's growing and learning who he wants to be… and that person isn't just sitting around watching Judge Judy all day.