How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
And the normalcy of it got me looking at the Creeds like they were normal people again […] Things don't have to be sane when they're normal. (2.38)
Normalcy in this situation acts as a sort of numbing agent for Torey. Through saying the Apostle's Creed, he stops thinking critically about the Creed family, and starts seeing them as normal again. What do you think he means when he says "Things don't have to be sane when they're normal"?
Quote #5
"[…] We have a normal life, and the only thing we have that he didn't is friends." (3.54)
Whoa, now. We might not know much about normalcy but we are sure that Chris was denied a whole lot more than just friends. He didn't have opportunities to become an individual person or even to grow up and gain independence at all, thanks to his totally domineering mother, so Alex is wrong here. But this is part of what's so sad about Chris's story—no one knew this about Chris's home life, so they all blame Chris for not fitting in.
Quote #6
He was seeing himself at that point the way other people did—as a social 'tard, an obnoxious reject. (6.58)
Has anything like this ever happened to you? Have you ever thought one thing about yourself only to be confronted with a different—and really rough—reality? This makes us want to hug Chris super badly.