How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"All I have ever wanted is what you have. And you, you don't even care about what you are. And I have had to serve you and call you mistress and wait and wait and wait." Selia put a hand over her eyes, and her shoulders began to shake. "What a horrid title, lady-in-waiting. I have waited and waited until I thought my bones would crack and my muscles freeze and my mind shrivel like a raisin. And there you were, with horses and tutors and gowns and servants, and all you did was hide in your room." (4.37)
Oh no she didn't… Selia pushes the boundaries with Ani, who is usually pretty relaxed about her royal status, and it's a classic case of the grass always being greener on the other side. Selia wants to be a princess, and Ani can't wait to get rid of her royal duties. The question is: should there be a difference in class between the two girls?
Quote #5
Ani listened and tried to piece together what life must be like living in the Forest on the edge of Bayern—difficult, impoverished, backbreaking work and the persistent question if they would last through another winter, she guessed. But she envied their commonality. (6.34)
Again Ani thinks about being someone else entirely, and this time it's the working class forest folk like Gilsa and Finn. So what if they don't have much money or prominence? They've got love and care for one another, and those emotions don't have any regard for what social class you are.
Quote #6
Not crown princess. Not a princess anymore. The serving girl's face was just a round stone in the wall. The mean dullness came crashing back into itself, hard and bleak and small. Ani sat on the bed and stared at her soft, uncallused hands. (7.42)
When Ani commits to being a goose girl, at first it's just to hide from Ungolad and his scary crew of guards—but eventually she finds happiness as a serving girl. Even though she doesn't know it yet, she fits in with the forest workers. Hmm… what does that say about her mom's idea of social class?