How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
Cruelty is a mystery, and the waste of pain. (1.18)
Translation: When you're cruel, you cause needless suffering to the object of your cruelty. Those who aren't inclined to be mean can't comprehend why anyone else would be.
Quote #2
"The caterpillars in distress," he concludes, "starved, shelterless, chilled with cold at night, cling obstinately to the silk ribbon covered hundreds of time, because they lack the rudimentary glimmers of reason which would advise them to abandon it." (4.31)
This is functional fixedness at its most sinister. The caterpillars are unable to stop doing what they've always done, even if it kills them.
Quote #3
Dragonfly nymphs, for instance, are easily able to shed a leg or two to escape a tight spot, but even dragonfly nymphs get stuck in the algae strands and starve. (7.33)
Escaping one kind of suffering doesn't mean another isn't waiting around the corner—nature is full of traps, and it doesn't care how many times you free yourself. You get no cleverness points.