How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
I watched as a man I'd never seen, a thin man topped with a bowler hat, jerked Billy so he sat closer to the pine, pulled his arms around the tree trunk, and lashed his wrists together. Then Bowler Hat bound up Billy's legs. The man's bony shoulder blades worked back and forth. When the man finished, Billy looked trussed up like a turkey ready for roasting. Billy hurt too. I couldn't see any blood—at least not at this distance—but I saw him wince with every breath. (17.42)
Here, we see the results of what Bowler Hat and Mr. Garrow have already done to Billy, so we know they mean business. If Georgie doesn't fight back, they well might kill her and Billy. What choices does Georgie have about how she engages in violence at this point?
Quote #8
I'd known as I took aim that I'd finish the Springfield. I did. The Springfield—my Springfield—flew from Bowler Hat's hands, the butt end splintering. Sparks scattered as parts of it landed in the fire and began to burn.
Bowler Hat grabbed at his right hand and hit the ground on his knees, genuflecting up and down, his hands clenched as if in prayer—profane prayer, because he swore up and down the alphabet. "My thumb! My thumb's gone!" (17.106-107)
Georgie decides to shoot her own gun—now wielded by Bowler Hat—instead of killing the man. She does, however, get his thumb. Not that this is really funny, but if there's any comic relief in this scene, it's Bowler Hat's freak out about his thumb. We have to say, as he was seriously going to murder two people, he's getting off easy by losing only a thumb.
Quote #9
She kept up a near constant monologue as she worked over my body with a brush: "My land, these bruises! There's society and savagery, and you sure crossed that line. We've got to bring you back." (19.12)
Mrs. Tartt is referring mainly to Georgie's appearance here, but can we read more into it? Has Georgie crossed a line between society and savagery? Does her encounter with the counterfeiters, and her journey as a whole, have any lasting effect on her ability to fit in with society?