How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
"Still, it seemed to us that the main reason that we were hated must be that we always lived by stealing. From the earliest times, rats lived around the edges of human cities and farms, stowed away on men's ships, gnawed holes in their floors and stole their food." (21.11)
Even though the rats are hurt by the fact that humans despise them so much, their new intelligence allows them to look at the issue from the other side. It's this ability that helps them to think up the Plan, which will allow them to live away from the "edges of human cities and farms." Of course, this understanding is also the main wedge between them and belonging with other groups of rats.
Quote #8
"Millions of years ago," he said, "rats seemed to be ahead of all the other animals, seemed to be making a civilization of their own. They were well-organized and built quite complicated villages and fields. Their descendants today are the rats known as prairie dogs." (21.13)
Have you ever heard the phrase "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet?" Well, this is a case of a "rat by any other name would smell a lot sweeter." The rats see the prairie dogs as they boat that they missed, close and cute cousins to rats who stole all of their thunder.
Quote #9
"Surely rats would have developed reading and writing judging by the way we took to it. But what about machines? What about cars and airplanes?" (21.16)
We're not sure about this, but we admire the rats' confidence. These are the types of beliefs that may allow the rats to develop a new and innovative society.