How we cite our quotes: (Section.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Then the sound again, in the stairway, not loud, and we could see Nancy's eyes halfway up the stairs, against the wall. They looked like cat's eyes do, like a big cat against the wall, watching us. When we came down the steps to where she was, she quit making the sound again, and we stood there until father came back up from the kitchen, with his pistol in his hand. (2.3)
Okay, someone's pulled out a gun. That means business. And what's this stuff with Nancy's eyes peeled wide enough that they're visible from so far? Again, the passage serves to both illustrate Nancy's internal sense of helplessness (a scary thing) and the external threat of Jesus (another scary thing). We don't know about you, but we're ready to hide under the covers.
Quote #8
"Then why is she afraid?" mother said. "She says he is there. She says she knows he is there tonight." (3.13-14)
Eep! Who knew Faulkner could be as scary as Stephen King? Once more, the story keeps the suspense and fear turned up. In some ways, it's a story about fear: Nancy's inability to control her life, arguably due to the sharp, unfair division of the races, and the threat of her husband.
Quote #9
"Let's go down to my house and have some more fun," Nancy said. (3.24)
Okay, we've got a bit of nutso going on here. And more double-duty on the part of a single line. First, Nancy, who is convinced that no black person can stop Jesus, thinks that three children can. In this line, she tells nine-year-old Quentin, seven-year-old Caddy, and five-year-old Jason to come to her house with her. It seems she thinks their whiteness can stop Jesus, since surely their childhood alone can't. But secondly, we are now afraid for the children, not just Nancy. The stakes, and thus the suspense, have gone up.