How we cite our quotes: (Part.Paragraph)
Quote #1
I emerge from the simulation with a yell. My lip stings, and when I take my hand away from it, there is blood on my fingertips. (1.1)
We dive into the story just as Tobias/Four comes out of a fear simulation, screaming. With that being our introduction, we know fear is going to be a factor in this book.
Quote #2
At every faction meeting, our leaders, usually speaking through my father, urge us not to be afraid of the factionless, to treat them like human beings instead of broken, lost creatures. (1.26)
It seems like these speeches are intended to have the opposite effect. "Don't fear these scary dangerous factionless people! They're just like us! Except they're scary and dangerous!"
Quote #3
Fear makes my legs go weak, so I back away from the doorway and sink into a crouch by one wall as I wait to get to wherever we're going. (1.212)
It's hard to picture that this is Tobias/Four narrating. By the end of these four Four stories, he doesn't seem like a person who let fear overcome him physically in this way. This line shows us how much he grows.
Quote #4
I close my eyes, and I'm frozen; I can't even push myself off the roof. All I can do is tilt and fall. (1.241)
If you've read Divergent, this might surprise you. Tris is much more fearless than Four is. She jumps into the Pit first. Tobias/Four doesn't even jump… he just falls in.
Quote #5
I'm not afraid of the speed of the train, just the heights, but here the train is close to the ground, so when I jump, I do it without fear. (2.48)
It's interesting how specific fears can be. For Four, a speeding train = fine, but anything high up = sheer terror.
Quote #6
Even though I am the initiate with only four fears, I am also the one who can't dispel them when the simulations are done. (2.320)
Four's four fears are intense, mainly because they're the result of years and years of abuse from his father. That type of thing is almost impossible to shake, even for the bravest person.
Quote #7
Watching someone else's fear simulation is strange. Intimate. I don't feel right about forcing other people to be vulnerable, even if I don't like them. Every human being is entitled to her secrets. (3.116)
This attitude toward looking at someone's private fears puts Four in opposition to Jeanine, who likes looking at people's fears.
Quote #8
"That isn't overcoming cowardice! Cowardice is how you decide to be in real life, and in real life, I am not getting pecked to death by crows, Four!" (4.137)
Tris makes a good point here. Are the fear simulations pointless? Can anyone really learn anything in virtual reality, or does it just cause virtual insanity?
Quote #9
"Becoming fearless isn't the point. That's impossible. It's learning how to control your fear, and how to be free from it, that's the point." (4.156)
If being fearless isn't the point, why is Four so revered for having so few fears?
Quote #10
"Fear doesn't shut you down," I say. "It wakes you up. I've seen it. It's fascinating." (4.414)
Four isn't using a general you here, he's specifically addressing Tris. She seems to be able to harness fear as a form of fuel the way some cars run on vegetable oil. That makes her unique. Some people, like Four himself, just freeze when facing their biggest fears.