How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Steer clear of them—that's what I've always been told. No good never really came to no one from any human bean. (14.51)
Whoa, harsh. Sure, this quote puts Pod's prejudice on full display, but it also tells us a little something about how prejudice works. As it turns out, you've got to be carefully taught. Prejudice doesn't come out of nowhere. It's drummed into a person's brain by all the prejudiced people who come before.
Quote #8
A drop of Madeira here, a pair of old stockings there, a handkerchief or so, an odd vest, or an occasional pair of gloves—these, Mrs. Driver thought, were different; these were within her rights. But trinkets out of the drawing room cabinet—that, she told herself grimly, staring at the depleted shelves, was a different story altogether! (16.10)
Is what Mrs. Driver does "a different story altogether"? Let's face it. One way of looking at this business is that Mrs. Driver is nothing but a big ol' hypocrite.
Quote #9
The boy looked down at his pocketless night-shirt. "I'll carry you," he said.
"How?" Asked calmly. "In your hand?"
"Yes," the boy.
"I'd rather die," said Homily. "I'd rather stay right here and be eaten by the rat-catcher from the town hall at Leighton Buzzard." (18.46-49)
Old prejudices die hard. Even after the boy and the borrower family have become friends, Homily still has her reservations about these humans.