How we cite our quotes: Chapter.Paragraph
Quote #4
"You don't even have the first idea. She's amazing. She's miraculous. She's the most incredible, beautiful girl. And I made her." Mr. B raised an eyebrow. Bob recoiled. "Not like that. I made the people who made her and the ones who made them and the ones who made them. And so on and so on, back and back and back. And each set of perfect combinations came together because of the way I made them." (28.82)
So, um, how much does Bob actually love Lucy? He sure talks about how he made her a lot. We don't want to be gross, but is this just him masturbating again in a really really weird way?
Quote #5
Something about this scene ignites a tiny flame in Mr. B's heart and he cannot tear his eyes from it. Estelle is not beautiful—but the pure clarity of her features makes her as irresistible to him as an angel. He would like to be in the boat with them, in the place of the Eck. He would like to be held in the arms of this clear-eyed, clear-voiced girl, who seems to be the only creature among all his acquaintances who cares for something besides self-glorification and the gratification of her own desires. (34.37)
Here we go: this seems like the first spark of love. Notice how, unlike all the scenes of Lucy and Bob, things are not going insane.
Quote #6
Bob watched her, and knew that he too had been wrong about the world. It had been veiled even from him, its creator, and now lay before him in a fullness of glory. (35.33)
Bob seems to be suggesting here that he hasn't really lived until he's loved, but (1) we're not so sure about that, and (2) we're also not so sure that he's actually in love—maybe a lot more like lust.