How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
My name back then was Chiyo. I wouldn't be known by my geisha name, Sayuri, until years later. (1.25)
This is a bit of foreshadowing that becoming a geisha isn't as simple as troweling on a lot of makeup and putting on a pretty kimono. It changes a young woman's identity so much, she even gets a new name.
Quote #2
I'm sure I looked no more elegant than a guest at an inn looks wearing a robe on the way to the bath. But I'd never before worn anything nearly so glamorous on my body. (4.58)
We think Chiyo loves her robe so much not because of how it looks, but because of what it means. Her robe is a small upgrade in her status. It's a mile marker on her journey to a different life.
Quote #3
Only when she sits before her mirror to apply her makeup with care does she become a geisha. And I don't mean that this is when she begins to look like one. This is when she begins to think like one too. (5.20)
Thinking like a geisha almost makes it seem like a brainwashing process. And, in a way, it kind of is. Does anyone want to be a geisha? They must be convinced that it's a lifestyle they can enjoy.