How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #4
From wrong to wrong the exasperated spirit
Proceeds, unless restored by that refining fire
Where you must move in measure, like a dancer. (771-773)
The speaker shows us that fire doesn't just have to be a symbol of ambition or lust. Rather, it can be an image of purification and humility. Like fire, the lesson of humility can really cause us a lot of pain. But also like fire, humility can purify us of all our bad qualities and make us better in the long run. If we don't learn to accept the pain of humility, then we'll just spend our whole lives moving from bad decision to bad decision ("From wrong to wrong"), getting more exhausted as we go.
Quote #5
Quick now, here now, always—
A condition of complete simplicity
(Costing not less than everything) (879-881)
If we're ever going to get out of our own heads and start appreciating the world around us, we're going to have to start focusing on the "here" and "now" in a totally uncomplicated way. The thing is, though, that if we're going to do this, it's going to cost us everything, especially our sense of individual pride.
Quote #6
Who then devised the torment? Love.
Love is the unfamiliar name
Behind the hands that wove
The intolerable shirt of flame
Which human power cannot remove.
We only live, only suspire
Consumed by either fire or fire (834-840).
So why does it hurt so much to be humble? What is responsible for all the pain we're willing to endure to become better people? In short, the answer is love. Love is what makes us put on the "shirt of flame" and live through the pain of being humbled. Without love, we would never try to improve ourselves. There's just no choice in the end. If we want to become better people, we have to become more humble, and either way, the experience is going to be painful.