How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Left alone all night, he was vicious in the morning, and Thea was by now so wrapped up in his career that for the time very few considerations took precedence. Because she was making history.
Once the bird Caligula fails, Thea gives up on him and also on her dream of "making history." Augie doesn't give us the impression that Thea will someday try to get a replacement eagle. Maybe this is because Augie won't be with her. Maybe she thought Augie would buy into this venture, but others wouldn't. What do you think?
Quote #8
But I thought, What was wrong with the enjoyment of love, and what did there have to be an eagle for? (16.3)
Danger, Will Robinson! Before taking the road trip from Chicago to Mexico, maybe Augie should have taken a breath and figured out whether his dreams and Thea's dreams really matched. If he has to ask about the eagle, then he really isn't on the same page as Thea. Arguably, he's not even in love, because he hasn't really tried to understand her heart, and in the famous words of Selena Gomez, the heart wants what it wants.
Quote #9
I had yet to find out how little people want you to succeed in an extraordinary project, and what comfort some have that the negligible is upheld and all other great effort falls on its face. (16.113)
We wonder if Facebook would have brightened Augie's perception. The "likes" and words of affirmation he'd receive whenever he started on some new course might have warmed his heart. But maybe he'd secretly assume his followers all want a dislike button to press, or he'd feel a Fear of Missing Out and become even more aimless.