How we cite our quotes: (Record.Paragraph)
Quote #1
She took her seat; she began to play something wild, convulsive, loud like all their life then—not a shadow of rational mechanism. (4.8)
The first, quiet act of rebellion. It's not bombs in the street, but a piano piece played supposedly as an example of the "backwards" ancients. This shows how I-330 and her companions plant the seeds of rebellion in the one state.
Quote #2
Yes, Grandmother,' answered I-330. (6.14)
Interesting that I-330 refuses to call the old woman by a number here. This is another good example of a small act of rebellion against the State.
Quote #3
"To be original means to stand out among others; consequently, to be original means to violate the law of equality." (6.43)
One wonders how the State accomplishes anything at all when originality itself is considered an act of seditious rebellion?
Quote #4
"This irrational root grew into me as something strange, foreign, terrible; it tortured me; it could not be thought out. It could not be defeated because it was beyond reason." (8.1)
Rebellion is irrational, like the square root of -1. It is also undeniable. This foundation gives the rebels power, because the basis of their rebellion is something that simply can't be erased or ignored.
Quote #5
In my final moment I will piously and gratefully kiss the punishing hand of the Benefactor. I have the right to receive punishment according to my relationship to the One State—and I will not cede this right. None of us ciphers should ever dare to refuse this, our single, only—and, as such, valuable—right. (20.3)
It may sound weird, but this is actually a form of rebellion. He's asserting his right over the State, even if it's only a right to help shape the method of his doom.
Quote #6
For a second I saw her as an outsider, like everyone else: she was already not a cipher—she was only a person; she existed only as the metaphysical substance of insult, inflicted toward the One State. (22.6)
Notice how the book exemplifies acts like rebellion into a character's personality. I-330 herself is a walking act of rebellion, existing in part of a system that is supposed to stamp out anything that might result in a person like her.
Quote #7
And we must all go crazy, it is essential that we all go crazy—as soon as possible! It is essential—I tell you! (27.33)
In a world this oppressive, where your every move is controlled quite literally, the only meaningful act of rebellion may be to go insane.
Quote #8
Well, which final revolution do you want then? There isn't a final one. Revolutions are infinite. Final things are for children because infinity scares children and it is important that children sleep peacefully at night … (30.16)
I-330 cleverly acknowledges that all revolutions are ultimately doomed, and conversely that you will never be able to stop them. A paradox! Just the sort of thing that the State is trying to stamp out.
Quote #9
But what if you didn't wait for it to happen—but jumped headfirst over the edge? Wouldn't that be the single most correct action, immediately untangling everything? (30.35)
Suicide as an act of defiance? It's not unheard of in the real world, and in a future world this bleak, some people might see it as the only option.
Quote #10
It took one hundredth of a second only; I saw thousands of hands arise "opposed" and fall back. ( 25.16)
Rebellions often hinge on simple gestures. Think about the Boston Tea Party, for instance, or for revolutionaries in all sorts of countries to wear armbands. This is MEPHIS simple gesture: not a practical act of defiance so much as a gesture to demonstrate that we always have choices.