The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking #1) Rules and Order Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter, Paragraph)

Quote #7

"Schooling ain't life." "Ain't it?" she says, her eyebrows raising in mock surprise. "What did I say before?" I snap back. "Some of us were busy surviving and couldn't learn about subdividing farming." (21.147-149)

Priorities are definitely part of rule and order. Todd and Viola are fighting about whether it's more important to learn or just start working as soon as you're old enough. Their ideas about these things come from the civilizations they have been raised in. Viola's been educated on the theories of making a society work, while Todd's been busy supporting his society through manual labor.

Quote #8

"Noise send 'em wild. Hear tell of one where everyone wears masks so's no one kin see their faces. There's another where no one don't do nothing but sing all day long they gone so crazy. And one where everyone's walls are made a glass and no one wears no clothes cuz no one's got secrets in Noise, do they?" (28.66)

Wilf's wife is telling Todd about how some people have abandoned order. They haven't been disciplined enough to make rules that will help them combat Noise, so instead they're letting themselves run around naked and wearing masks. In other words: They're ruled by chaos.

Quote #9

She nods. "I asked Doctor Snow why they did it here and he said, "To keep men's thoughts private." I shrug. "It makes an awful racket, but it kinda makes sense, don't it? One way to deal with the Noise." (33.17-19)

Carbonel Downs has found its own way to keep order: They play music to kind of mute everyone's personal thoughts. Not so bad, huh? Besides, music has order of its own. So besides making everyone feel calm and organized, they don't hear each other's personal thoughts. And when everyone gets that space from each other, order happens.