How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
"And I do not think she's been so much in love with him that she won't forget him. Fifteen is too young to know much about love." (3.77)
This is Gerald saying that he believes that Ellen will forget Philippe. She never does… just as Scarlett continues loving Ashley way past his sell-by date. Perseverance can be a good thing, but it can also mean being stuck in a rut. Is Ellen's life-long love for her cousin noble and tragic, or is it frustrating and irritating?
Quote #2
"I won't think of that now," she said firmly. "If I think of it now, it will upset me. There's no reason why things won't come out the way I want them—if he loves me. And I know he does!" (4.95)
Scarlett's ability to focus on a goal and get there, come Union soldiers or the collapse of civilization, is foreshadowed in her insistence on pursuing Ashley even after he's definitively gone. She uses the same trick, too—refusing to think about whatever it is that might stop her from pressing ahead.
Quote #3
"They both see the same unpleasant truth, but Rhett likes to look it in the face and enrage people by talking about it—and Ashley can hardly bear to face it." (12.116)
Gumption is facing the unpleasant truth… or is it? Is Rhett really showing gumption by tweaking people? Scarlett tends to just push on and ignore the unpleasant truths all together, rather than getting obsessed with them.