How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"To change the system and give political power to the ninety percent of the people who have little or no political control now." (4.174)
This is Merry's mission statement (and also the mission statement of other activists the Swede sees in the news). Compare this statement to the rallying cry of Occupy Wall Street: "We are the 99%!"
Quote #5
You're nothing but a s***ty little capitalist who exploits the brown and yellow people of the word and lives in luxury behind the n*****-proof security gates of his mansion." (4.68)
Who but Rita Cohen would speak like this to the Swede? Rita doesn't seem to see the Swede as part of the human race she claims to be trying to protect. Whatever truth there might be in her message is lost in the anger and irrationality of the delivery.
Quote #6
Angela tells [the Swede] that everything he's heard about Communism is a lie. (4.192)
As we discuss briefly in her "Character Analysis," Angela Davis is a real person, an influential figure in the Civil Rights movement. She is a member of the Communist Party. As a fictional character in the novel, as imagined by the Swede, she presents a rational counterpart to Merry and Rita Cohen in terms of activism.