How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
I was still better off than most of the kids in Africa. [...] My life wasn't so bad. (1.38)
Wade has a way of rationalizing his world to keep from getting too depressed about it. Although we're not sure that an energy crisis is going to affect people who have been living without modern conveniences for centuries the same way it affects Americans today.
Quote #2
"I don't know [if I can save the world]. Maybe not. But I'm gonna give it a shot." (9.141)
Even when something is against all odds, Art3mis gives it a try. She's also talking about the real world—planet Earth—not the OASIS, which is the only world Wade is concerned with.
Quote #3
If there was already another gunter [...] my plan was to make a run for it, then steal a car and drive [...] to the next identical copy of Middletown. And then the next, until I found an instance of Halliday's house that was unoccupied. (10.9)
Early on in the Hunt, Wade shows his intention to go to any lengths and devote any amount of time to finding the egg. Even though this is a digital car he's planning on stealing, if the Hunt required him to hotwire and steal a real car, he'd figure out a way.