How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Subconsciously, she had always been aware that Abhorsen's spirit had been too long from his body, and too deep in the realm of Death. He could never truly live again. Consciously, she chose to barricade this knowledge from her mind. (22.43)
Knowing about death in theory and actually dealing with it emotionally are two very different things for Sabriel. She hasn't been able to cope with her father's death emotionally, even though she understands so much about death itself. Subconsciously, Sabriel's known all along that her search for him won't bring him back, but she's been in denial.
Quote #8
"I have walked in Death to the very precipice of the Ninth Gate," Abhorsen said quietly. "I know the secrets and horrors of the Nine Precincts. I do not know what lies beyond, but everything that lives must go there, in the proper time. That is the rule that governs our work as the Abhorsen, but it also governs us. You are the fifty-third Abhorsen, Sabriel. I have not taught you as well as I should—let this be my final lesson. Everyone and everything has a time to die." (23.36)
Well said, Abhorsen. Sabriel's father states a major idea in this book, right out loud: Everyone and everything has a time to die. This speech neatly summarizes the beliefs of all those who become the Abhorsen. Mortality, to the Abhorsen, is neither good nor bad—instead it is simply necessary.
Quote #9
They felt a terrible urge to leave their bodies, to shuck them off as so much worn-out baggage. Their spirits—their essential selves—wanted to go, to go into Death and plunge joyfully into the strongest current, to be carried to the very end.
"Think of Life!" screamed Sabriel, her voice only just audible through the pure note. She could feel Touchstone dying, his will insufficient to hold him in Life. He seemed almost to expect this sudden summons into Death. (23.55-56)
When Sabriel's father rings Astarael, the final bell, its sound calls Touchstone and Sabriel into Death. They cling to each other, and in the end, it's their love for each other that keeps them in Life. What do you think Nix is saying here about the power of love versus the power of death?