“Do you not know, my son, with how little wisdom the world is governed?”

“Got it memorized?”

“A man can stand a lot as long as he can stand himself. He can live without hope, without friends, without books, even without music, as long as he can listen to his own thoughts.”

“The wild, cruel beast is not behind the bars of the cage. He is in front of it.”

“Wisdom is knowing what to do next; Skill is knowing how to do it, and Virtue is doing it.”

“He may not have said the words, but I know my son. I saw the way he looked at you.""How?""Like he'd do murder for you.”

“The boy who was taken," she said. "Is he your son?""How old do you think I am, Dweller?""I'm a little shaky on the fossil record, but I'd say fifty to sixty thousand years.""Eighteen. And no. He's not my son.”