"Girls are made of water and boys are made of mud. When I am with girls I feel fresh and clean, but when I am with boys I feel stupid and nasty."
This quote is something Baoyu says in the novel, explaining why he prefers to spend time with girls. He compares girls to being like water, suggesting they are pure, but compares boys to mud, suggesting they are corrupted. Throughout the novel, Baoyu is attracted to the quality of purity in women he encounters.
"Greater familiarity bred greater intimacy. And of course, with greater intimacy came the occasional tiffs and misunderstandings that are usual with people who have a great deal to do with each other."
This is an example of one of the many compelling psychological insights that the author makes in the text. Here is saying that as people begin to become more familiar with each other, they disagree and argue more. He then illustrates this through relationships and interactions between characters.
"Never suffer, never learn."
The novel is full of short, wise quotes like this one, which is part of the reason the text is so well-loved. This quote suggests that we learn a lot from suffering, and without it, we would learn nothing.
"When first the world from chaos rose,
Tell me, how did love begin?
The wind and moonlight first did love compose."
This is an example of the author’s poetic skill. Here the narrator is asking about the origin of love and concludes that “the wind and moonlight first did love compose,” suggesting that love is part of the elements and nature.
