“I must try to remember that a boy's heart is not a man's, and perhaps a teacher must learn from his pupil, too, eh?”

“Man is a pupil, pain is his teacher.”

“TEACHER seeks pupil. Must have an earnest desire to save the world. Apply in person.”

“There is a need for closeness, yet we can't get too close. The teacher-pupil relationship is a kind of tightrope to be walked. I know how carefully I must choose a word, a gesture. I understand the delicate balance between friendliness and familiarity, dignity and aloofness. I am especially aware of this in trying to reclaim Ferone. I don't know why it's so important to me. Perhaps because he, too, is a rebel. Perhaps because he's been so damaged. He's too bright and too troubled to be lost in the shuffle.”

“I've always been my own teacher. And I must confess I've been my favorite pupil a well.”

“If a mark of affection can sometimes be taken for an insult, perhaps the gesture of love is not universal: it too must be translated from one language to another, must be learned.”