How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
There was a bellow of collective outrage. The whole of the mouse community surged toward Despereaux. The mice seemed to become one angry body with hundreds of tails and thousands of whiskers and one huge, hungry mouth opening and closing and opening and closing saying over and over and over again, "To the dungeon. To the dungeon. To the dungeon." (10.59)
Poor Despereaux has literally been cast out by the entire mouse community. In this story, he's sent to the dungeon where he could be killed by the rats. Maybe the author is saying that being cut off from your friends and family is a pretty dangerous thing in general. It makes you very vulnerable.
Quote #5
Rat.
A curse, an insult, a word totally without light. And not until he heard it from the mouth of the princess did Roscuro realize that he did not like being a rat, that he did not want to be a rat. This revelation hit Roscuro with such force, that it made him lose his grip on the chandelier. (20.15-16)
It's not until Roscuro is spotted by the princess that he understands why rats stay in the basement. It's definitely a shocking revelation to learn that people are disgusted by him just because he's a rat. Our author's talking about stereotyping here.
Quote #6
And he saw that the princess was glaring at him. Her eyes were filled with disgust and anger. "Go back to the dungeon" was what the look she gave him said. "Go back into the darkness where you belong."
This look, reader, broke Roscuro's heart. (21.20-22)
Roscuro's never felt so humiliated and shunned in his life…and that moment changes him. Up until now, he could dream of a life in the light. This is what humiliation can do—make people lose their dreams until they become bitter and hopeless.