How we cite our quotes: (Book.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
How happy will be the citizens of our edifice, for they will not need to fear or worry about being evicted by foreign armies, for this work has the special property that its owners cannot be expelled. (2.12.1)
To make sure that no one ever messes with the City of Ladies, Christine de Pizan builds it so that no army will ever be able to get through its walls or force the women inside it to leave. This is a safe place for Christine and for women like her. As we've mentioned before, though, it's really hard to determine whether the city is just in Christine's mind or if it's a real place in the book. Our money's on "in Christine's mind," though.
Quote #5
She entered and fearlessly took the sword which she saw at the head of the bed, withdrew it from its sheath, then raised it with all her strength, and cut off Holophernes' head without being heard by anyone. (2.31.1)
Don't be surprised if you find more than one story in this text about a woman chopping off a dude's head. Some people would argue that this is a sign of symbolic castration, and they might even be right. But for now, we're going to stick with the idea that sometimes a woman chopping off a dude's head is just a woman chopping off a dude's head.
Quote #6
However, [Coriolanus] knew how to avenge himself, for he went over to the side of those whom he had previously defeated and led them in rebellion against the Romans. (2.34.1)
Coriolanus (who you might know from Shakespeare) was a pretty good warmonger. He was so good that he conquered one group, then joined them and conquered the people he was originally fighting for. That's a pretty good track record.