How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
How […] are you supposed to know when you're not a kid anymore in this society? (24.2)
Well, this is a decent point. But just because we don't have any manhood initiation rituals in 21st century America doesn't mean you don't have to become an adult.
Quote #5
These days a kid has to go looking for his own initiation or make his own personal war to fight since the wars the atomic vampires throw are so hard to believe in." (24.5)
Ooh. We have a suggestion: how about fighting his own war to reclaim his life from the shadow of his father—by, say, making a commitment to Aimee and to his future? Just a thought.
Quote #6
I remember reading about these primitive initiation rituals in school. […] When he gets back, he's a man. (24.3)
Look, we're all for rituals. But you don't get to choose the culture you're born into, and it's not much good bemoaning the lack of primitive initiation rituals in your own. You've got to make the best with what you've got, which we're pretty sure does not mean drinking away your life before you even reach the legal drinking age. (Plus, bullet ants. Ouch.)