How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
How can he not be ashamed to lie at her feet and implore: "It can't go on like this. Think what I've done to you. You're sliding down a steep slope. Let's tell your mother. I'll marry you." (2.16.2)
So this Komarovsky guy has finally grown a conscience and started feeling bad about taking advantage of 16-year-old Lara. To try to redeem himself, he offers her his hand in marriage. Oh yeah, buddy. Thanks for the nice gesture. You might want to tell this girl's mom you're breaking up with her before you marry her daughter.
Quote #2
"If I die, don't part. You're made for each other. Get married. There, I've betrothed you," she added and burst into tears. (3.4.16)
The dying wish of Tonya Gromeko's mother is for Tonya and Zhivago to get married. That's a lot of pressure, especially if the kids weren't really thinking about marrying each other before that. Sure enough, though, Tonya and Yuri eventually fulfill the woman's wish… for a while. Do you think she was right to ask this of them? Did they do the right thing when they fulfilled her wishes?
Quote #3
Lara's dream was that in a year, after they passed the state examinations, she and Pasha would get married and go to teach. (3.7.6)
After her horrible affair with Komarovsky, all Lara wants to do is settle down and have a quiet married life with Pasha Antipov. And she does, until Antipov gets restless and runs off to fight in World War I. It seems like it's really hard to get people to stay still long enough to live a nice married life in this book.
Quote #4
"Don't remain calm. I'm always in danger. If you love me and want to keep me from perishing, don't put it off, let's get married quickly." (3.9.7)
When she finds out that the truth of her affair with Komarovsky might come out in public, Lara asks Antipov to marry her right away. Because you know, it'll be a lot tougher for him to dump her if they're already married.
Quote #5
"And, finally, if I proved that I was his wife, it's no big deal! What have wives got to do with it? Is it the time for such things?" (9.15.10)
When she finds out that Antipov is working nearby under an assumed identity, Lara can't understand why she can't run to him and let the world know that she's his wife. The Communists might have abolished private property, but they haven't abolished marriage.
Quote #6
He loved Tonya to the point of adoration. The peace of her soul, her tranquility, were dearer to him than anything in the world. He stood staunchly by her honor, more than her own father or than she herself. (9.16.4)
The narrator wants to make one thing very clear to us: Yuri Zhivago loves his wife Tonya and will do almost anything for her. The problem is that he can't resist Lara Antipova and ultimately has an affair with her.
Quote #7
In defense of her wounded pride he would have torn the offender to pieces with his own hands. And here that offender was he himself. (9.16.4)
If any man ever dared to insult his wife or hurt her pride, Zhivago would fight him in a heartbeat. The problem is that he is the one insulting his wife by having an affair. Unfortunately, a guy can't really do a good job of beating himself up. So Zhivago does the next best thing and just feels guilty all the time.
Quote #8
And he, fool that he was, had remembered this house so many times, had missed it, and had entered this room, not as a space, but as his yearning for Lara! How ridiculous this way of feeling probably was from outside!" (13.7.13)
Zhivago wouldn't expect anyone looking at him from an objective angle to sympathize with his affair with Lara. In fact, it's almost as if the dude knows he's being watched by us readers. And he might be right: maybe we don't have a ton of sympathy for him. But we probably have a little more than he'd think.
Quote #9
True, Lara doesn't know them, but still this seamstress and hairdresser, a total stranger, wasn't ignorant of their fate, yet Lara doesn't say a word about them in her note. (13.7.10)
Zhivago finds it strange at first that Lara wouldn't mention anything about his family in her note to him. But then again, maybe she just wants him to forget about them so that she and he can live together as man and wife. It's only later that Zhivago realizes he's only read one side of Lara's letter and that the other side totally includes a bunch of info about his family.
Quote #10
"But I'm married to him, he's my husband, Yurochka." (13.11.8)
Even as Zhivago and Lara live together as man and wife, Lara is always very clear about the fact that she'd go running back to her legal husband, Antipov, in a heartbeat if she were able to. As you can imagine, this casts a pretty thick shadow over her relationship with Zhivago.