How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
"You git," the old man said. "Don't be talking to my wife." (68.46)
There's a recurring motif in the novel of creepy old men being married to really young women. One is Janey, who is resourceful enough to run away, but this old man, encountered by Jake Spoon, seems just as mean, treating his wife as property and determined to keep her to himself.
Quote #8
"I couldn't sit around in a house all day," [Jennie] said. "If someone was ever to marry me I expect I'd run off too." (69.109)
In Lonesome Dove, marriage means settling down. Maybe that's what it always means, but it's especially apparent here, where cowboys and whores live roaming, nomadic lifestyles.
Quote #9
The idea had shocked Bob, a conventional man if there ever was one. He could not believe he had married a woman who wanted to live like an Indian. He worked hard to give her a respectable life, and yet […] she stubbornly kept her own money; year after year—for the children's education, she said. (75.33)
Bob believes in traditional marriage roles, and while that may have seemed nice for him, it's a good thing Clara never really bought in to it. After Bob's accident, where would Clara be if she hadn't kept her own money against her husband's wishes? She wouldn't be able to take care of him, that's for sure.