Mother Night Literature and Writing Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #4

His examination papers were quite probably the longest such papers ever written in the history of dental education, and probably the most irrelevant as well. They began, sanely enough, with whatever subject the examination required Jones to discuss. But, regardless of that subject, Jones managed to go from it to a theory that was all his own—that the teeth of Jews and Negroes proved beyond question that both groups were degenerate. (13.5)

Here's another instance when writing reveals too much of the inner soul of the writer. In this case, it's not a reader or viewer doing the interpretation; rather, it's the act of writing itself that drags the truth out of Jones. He's so filled with paranoid, obsessive hate, that he can't even hide it to save his degree. The more he writes, the more his gnarled beliefs come to life for him.

Quote #5

'Will you write a play for me some time?'

'I don't know if I can write any more,' I said.

'Didn't Helga inspire you to write?' she said.

'Not to write, but to write the way I wrote,' I said.

'You wrote a special way—so she could play the part,' she said. 'That's right,' I said. 'I wrote parts for Helga that let her be the quintessence of Helga onstage.'

'I want you to do that for me some time,' she said. (24.51-57)

Besides wanting everything Helga had, Resi recognizes the power of writing to make things real. Yes, real things are already real, but in this view, writing about real things makes them more real. That's what Resi wants Campbell to do for her. Why? Because his being able to do so would mean that he "gets" her—he really understands what makes her tick.

Quote #6

'When you get out of this country with your girl, get yourself new surroundings, a new identity, you'll start writing again,' he said, 'and you'll write ten times better than you ever did before. Think of the maturity you'll be bringing to your writing!' (28.22)

Writing, for Kraft, is apparently like a fine wine. Now that Campbell has aged, lived a full life, and is about to be free, he can really get going on his writing career. That's what Campbell is doing: writing to us about all he's learned from his jail cell.