How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"I want you to [...] start selling cement to everybody in this country, and then I want us to buy this laguna [...] and build a house that looks right straight out at Japan." (3.2.67)
It isn't long before Susan catches the bug and becomes ambitious herself. After seeing how hard and how well Oliver works, she becomes convinced that he's a hair away from a massive, multi-million-dollar success that will change their lives forever. But, life is rarely that simple. As Susan will come to learn, being ambitious is only half of the battle.
Quote #5
Pioneer or not, resource-raider or not, afflicted or not with the frontier faith that exploitation is development and development is good, he was simply an honest man. (3.6.4)
It would be really easy to lump in Oliver with the money-grubbing businessmen we see him dealing with throughout Angle of Repose, but we think that would be giving the guy short shrift. True, in hindsight, he does engage in many practices that we now know are detrimental. But, Oliver was never doing it to line his own pockets—he did it because he thought that it would better mankind.
Quote #6
"I'm just a big green boy too honest for his own good. I'm not smart enough to play these poker games with grown men." (5.5.42)
Although Oliver has no shortage of ambition, he's anything but a businessman. The guy has no interest in playing games, manipulating others, or kissing rich dudes' butts so that they'll toss him a few Benjamins. All Oliver cares about are results.