How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"I see. Then if a man is 'John Davis,' he's a son, but if he has some other last name he's your co-husband. But a girl would be 'Jenny Davis' either way, wouldn't she? How do I tell? By her age? No that wouldn't help. I'm confused. And I thought clan marriages were complex. […]." (8.41)
The Davis line marriage is important to the novel's libertarian view because it shows the idea that government should stay out of personal and family affairs. If you want to have six wives or husbands, hey, that's on you—just do yourself a solid and spread the birthdays out a bit. (We talk about the Davis line marriage more in the "Symbols" section, if you're interested.)
Quote #5
One who checked passports did not try hard, which was well as most were counterfeit and early ones were crude. But before long, authentic paper was stolen and counterfeits were as dinkum as official ones—more expensive but Loonies preferred free-enterprise passports. (9.20)
The Loonies would rather buy a fake passport from a private dealer than fill the coffers of the Authority with official ones. Free market FTW!
Quote #6
"Okay, court has been accepted and all are bound to abide by my verdict. Let's settle fees. How high can you boys go? Please understand I'm not going to judge an elimination for dimes. So ante up or I turn him loose." (11.46)
The novel takes the free market idea to some interesting—or do we mean scary?—heights. Yes, even trials can be wheeled and dealed on the Luna free market. We'll just let you decide whether that's a good idea or not.