How we cite our quotes: (Daysbefore.Paragraph) and (daysafter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"I'll see you in Jury tomorrow at five," he announced, and then walked away. Alaska crouched down, picked up the cigarette she had thrown away, and started smoking again. The Eagle wheeled around, his sixth sense detecting Insubordination To Authority Figures. Alaska dropped the cigarette and stepped on it. The Eagle shook his head, and even though he must have been crazy mad, I swear to God he smiled.
"He loves me," Alaska told me as we walked back to the dorm circle. "He loves all y'all, too. He just loves the school more. That's the thing. He thinks busting us is good for the school and good for us. It's the eternal struggle, Pudge. The Good versus the Naughty." (99before.14-15)
Boy, is Alaska bold. Her analysis is pretty spot on though. The Eagle lives and breathes rules. Alaska thinks it's her job to break these rules, and the Eagle knows it's his job to bust the students. It's almost as if the Eagle appreciates a good rule-breaker because without the rule breakers, there would be no struggle and, arguably, no learning experiences.
Quote #5
I worried about it for a moment as I held the bottle by the neck, but I wanted to trust her, and so I did. I took a minor sip, and as soon as I swallowed, I felt my body rejecting the stinging syrup of it. It washed back up my esophagus, but I swallowed hard, and there, yes, I did it. I was drinking on campus. (52before.7)
Pay close attention to how Miles describes his first moment of rule-breaking by drinking on campus: he's worried, takes only a teeny sip, rejects it, and only through great effort on his part does he successfully violate the rules. We can see this instance as representative of how Miles feels about rules in general—he doesn't particularly like breaking them, but he can do it if he needs to, especially if that need involves social acceptance. Think about whether his stance changes as he progresses throughout the book.
Quote #6
"Front Three: The Progress Reports: We're going to hack into the faculty computer network and use their grading database to send out letters to Kevin et al.'s families saying that they are failing some of their classes."
"We are definitely going to get expelled," I said. (3before.22-23)
Miles chooses to go along with this prank, though he's worried about the consequences. Is he the voice of reason? And if he's so worried, why does he continue with the prank? What unwritten rules are influencing Miles at this point in the novel?