How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"Me!" cried Fanny, sitting down again with a most frightened look. "Indeed you must excuse me. I could not act anything if you were to give me the world. No, indeed, I cannot act" (15.47).
Fanny's statement that she "cannot act" had a significant double meaning. Taken at face value, Fanny is saying that she can't participate in the play. But if we take "act" to refer to action, as opposed to getting on the stage in a theater, then Fanny is basically declaring that she's totally passive here. It's also notable that she says "cannot" instead of "will not" or "should not." "Cannot" implies that she has no choice in the matter and that she's somehow physically or mentally or emotionally incapable of "acting."
Quote #5
"But I do look down upon it, if it might have been higher. I must look down upon anything contented with obscurity when it might rise to distinction" (22.42).
Mary frequently praises bold, active people throughout the book and seems to judge and condemn people who aren't proactive. This particular statement is targeted at Edmund, since Mary sees his chosen profession as somehow "beneath" him.
Quote #6
"There, I will stake my last like a woman of spirit. No cold prudence for me. I am not born to sit still and do nothing. If I lose the game, it shall not be from not striving or it" (25.25.).
This is the best thematic statement for activity and action in the whole book, and it's also the statement that best characterizes Mary. It's interesting that Mary often characterizes herself through her own speech and dialogue. This is unusual in this novel – many characters, like Fanny, often don't speak at all and are characterized by the narrator. Mary is active even in how she presents herself to the world.