How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #10
Knot smiled and his sharp teeth showed. "It is my nature to fight." He paused. "But this time it is also a pleasure." (21.27)
Knot, a half-man, has been bred to violence. It's in his genes, in the same way that it's in Tool's genes and Nailer's genes. But all three characters also have a choice about whether to be violent or not. And we can see that Tool and Nailer both rise above the genetic tendency to kill.
Quote #11
"Richard never felt a thing when he hurt people. Just didn't give a damn. It's good that you feel something. Trust me. Even if it hurts, it's good." […]
"Maybe in a year you'll have mostly forgotten. But it will still be there. You've got blood on your hands." She shrugged. "It always costs. It never goes away." (25.12, 22)
After Nailer kills his father, who would have killed Nailer, he feels incredibly guilty. Sadna tries to talk him through how he might deal with his actions and guilt. What kind of cost does killing—and other violence—have on Nailer? How does his reaction to killing set him apart from his father, and why is this, as Sadna says, "good?"