How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
I am as passionately interested in where I am as is a lone sailor sans sextant in a ketch on the open ocean. What else is he supposed to be thinking about? (8.12)
The less outside stimulus you have, the greater your awareness of your environment. How long has it been since you saw someone so distracted by their phone they ran into someone?
Quote #5
Imperceptibly at first, and now consciously, I shy away from the arts, from the human emotional stew… I drive myself deeper and deeper into exile from my own kind. (10.65)
Dillard prefers the brutality of nature to the brutality of humans. Nature's brutality isn't driven by cruelty.
Quote #6
One day I was talking about snakes to Mrs. Mildred Sink, who operates a switchboard. A large pane separated us, and we were talking through a circular hole in the glass. (13.7)
Dillard mentions the physical barrier between her and another human to illustrate the emotional barrier she's chosen.