How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
"No, Happiness Machine," said Douglas, and was sad to see it burning there. He had been counting on Leo Auffmann to keep things in order, keep everybody smiling, keep the small gyroscope he often felt inside himself tilting toward the sun every time the earth tilted toward outer space and darkness. (14.31)
Doug's understanding of the body as a machine ties in nicely with the idea of people as time machines, which we explore elsewhere in this section in our discussion of memory as a theme.
Quote #8
"All I know is I feel good going to bed nights, Doug. That's a happy ending once a day. Next morning I'm up and maybe things go bad. But all I got to do is remember that I'm going to bed that night and just lying there a while makes everything okay." (29.7)
Tom's assessment of happiness is all the more poignant in a book in which we see how much adulthood complicates happiness (what with the children, families, illness, aging and all).
Quote #9
"You just won't admit you like crying, too. You cry just so long and everything's fine. And there's your happy ending." (29.14)
Tom's pretty astute when it comes to acknowledging the line between happiness and sadness. It's similar to Doug's awareness of life going hand-in-hand with an awareness of death; ultimately, once Doug's found some perspective, the latter makes the former no less sweet.