How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Blame the victim, naturally. (6.2)
Here, Libby isn't talking about herself. She has no problem blaming herself, remember? Instead, she's defending her mother's memory against those who blame Patty. Ironically, it actually was Patty's fault she and Debby were killed. But we don't think Libby really blames Patty in the end, either. What makes Patty exempt from blame?
Quote #8
I had a gust of panic: I can't live with this, Ben in jail, this open-ended guilt. I needed it finished. I needed to know. Me, me. I was still predictably selfish. (10.3)
At this point in the story, Libby's motivations begin to turn. She wants to find proof of Ben's innocence, but she wants to do it in order to resolve her own guilt. She thinks this is selfish, but isn't that the only thing the emotion of guilt is good for: forcing you to right wrongs?
Quote #9
I felt guilty about all of it, not good at all, but I feared having no money, really feared being broke, and that came before being nice. (16.1)
Libby's money issues tend to factor into almost every other aspect of her life. Here, she absolves herself of guilt for selling things by reminding herself that she needs the cash. In her world, money trumps everything. Money equals survival.