How we cite our quotes:
Quote #1
It was nice in the police cell. [...] I wondered how I would escape if I was in a story. [...] I decided that my best plan would be to wait for a really sunny day and then use my glasses to focus the sunlight on a piece of clothing and start a fire. I would then make my escape when they saw the smoke and too me out of the cell. (23.10)
Notice anything strange about this? Like how half-hearted this escape plan is? First, we really doubt that he could make his clothing catch fire. And even if he did, and was removed from his cell, that seems to be the most difficult part of the effort, yet he offers no plan for what he'll do once he's taken out. So, what's this all about? Well, you notice how this quote starts off? He likes it in there! He has no reason to want to leave. He assumes that if he were "in a story," then that character would probably want to escape. But you could argue that Christopher actually feels most free when locked inside a jail cell by himself.
Quote #2
This is because I do not always do what I am told.
And this is because when people tell you what to do it is usually confusing and does not make sense. (59.2-3)
Here's an interesting juxtaposition: Christopher feels confined (we might even say imprisoned) by being unable to understand directions. This allows him to justify not following said directions, leaving him free to do whatever the heck he wants.
Quote #3
Then, when I've got a degree in Maths, or Physics, or Maths and Physics, I will be able to get a job and earn lots of money and I will be able to pay someone who can look after me and cook my meals and wash my clothes [...] (71.8)
Christopher fantasizes about getting a job, and the freedom that comes from having money of his own. He would use the money to hire someone to help him live on his own, without needing his father to take care of him. Freedom begets freedom.
Quote #4
I used to have lots of Behavioural Problems, but I don't have so many now because I'm more grown up and I can take decisions for myself and do things on my own like going out of the house and buying things at the shop at the end of the road. (73.1)
This is the first time we hear about Christopher's behavior having generally improved over time. A few other times, he mentions specific lessons he's learned (about not hitting people, for one thing), but this comment is interesting because it represents his having gained freedom by restraining himself from actions he's learned are unacceptable.
Quote #5
To be a good astronaut you have to [...] be someone who would like being on their own in a tiny spacecraft thousands of thousands of miles away from the surface of the earth and not panic or get claustrophobia or homesick or insane. And I like really little spaces, so long as there is no one else in them with me. (83.2)
Look, we don't want to beat this thing into the ground, but do you see the connection between freedom and confinement here? Like, being an astronaut in space – that's freedom. Being trapped inside a little spacecraft, though? Now, that's confinement. It's Christopher's ability to deal with confinement that would allow him to experience such freedom.
Quote #6
It would be a bit warmer in the shed but I knew that Father might look for me in the shed, so I went round the back of the shed and I squeezed into the gap between the wall of the shed and the fence, behind the big, black, plastic tub for collecting rainwater. Then I sat down and I felt a bit safer. (167.46)
Christopher runs away from home, but he only gets to the backyard before feeling a little overwhelmed by his newfound freedom. What does he do, then? Well, he crams himself into a nice tight squeeze behind the garden shed, and, safely confined, feels much more secure.
Quote #7
And then I realised that there was nothing I could do which felt safe. [...] And then I imagine crossing out all the possibilities which were impossible, which is like in a maths exam, when you look at all the questions and you decide which ones you are going to do and which ones you are not going to do and you cross out all the ones which you are not going to do because then your decision is final and you can't change your mind. (179.23)
Look how naturally Christopher makes sure to limit his options, because he finds freedom so overwhelming and requires structure. This is a nice example, with the image of the diagram of options neatly laid out, and crossed off one-by-one. Also notice how, out of nowhere, he insists that changing your mind is out of the question. No – once you pick one, you aren't free to switch.
Quote #8
And then I thought how I could never be an astronaut because being an astronaut meant being hundreds of thousands of miles away from home, and my home was in London now and that was about 100 miles away which was more than 1,000 times nearer than my home would be if I was in space, and thinking about this made me hurt. (179.27)
This is a pretty crushing realization. Remember above, where we discussed how Christopher's love of small spaces would allow him to float freely in outer space with no problem? Well, here he admits that there's another kind of confinement important to him – namely, staying confined to his neighborhood. And if he can't overcome that self-confinement, he'll never reach that greater freedom.
Quote #9
So I climbed onto the middle shelf and I pulled one of the cases across like a door so that I was shut in, and it was dark and there was no one in there with me and I couldn't hear people talking so I felt much calmer and it was nice. (197.47)
Christopher climbs onto the luggage rack on the train. The irony here is that by confining himself into this small space, he escapes from the policeman who's been searching for him. Result? Freedom!
Quote #10
[...] I went into the photobooth because it was like a cupboard and it felt safer and I could look out through the curtain. (211.50)
Once again, Christopher confines himself into a small space, and that makes him then feel safe. At the same time, though, it affords him the freedom to peek out through the curtain, and to watch how other people use the subway ticket machine. So, it sounds as though he benefits from finding freedom within confinement.