How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
"Our brothers! You are right. Let the will of the Council be done upon our body. We do not care. But the light? What will you do with the light?" (7.31)
Even at this point, Equality 7-2521 still doesn't think he matters as an individual. But he also no longer equates himself with his society. What matters to him is his invention – the light. That's significant, because it's his invention and is caught up with his own individual identity in an important way. It's not fully clear here whether Equality 7-2521 values the light for its own sake, however, or because he's made it (for his sake, in other words), or because it could be of great use to his fellow men (for others' sake).
Quote #8
We sat still and we held our breath. For our face and our body were beautiful. Our face was not like the faces of our brothers, for we felt no pity when looking upon it. Our body was not like the bodies of our brothers, for our limbs were straight and thin and hard and strong. And we thought that we could trust this being who looked upon us from the stream, and that we had nothing to fear with this being (8.7)
Equality 7-2521 has discovered his own appearance for the first time, and he's surprised and captivated by it. He's explicitly able to identify with it, and to trust it. His identity has itself been a discovery; he's had to find it for himself.
Quote #9
I am. I think. I will.
My hands . . . My spirit . . . My sky . . . My forest . . . This earth of mine. . . . (11.1-11.2)
Now Equality 7-2521 has evidently discovered the word "I," and he can't get enough of it. For the first time, he can express his identity as an individual in language. It's interesting to note how quickly he moves from "I" to "my" – from talking about himself and his actions to talking about his possessions (and claiming the things around him.