How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
It made me wonder just how many attacks the palace suffered through that we never heard about. Was it far less safe here than I'd thought? (14.2)
One of the ways that the Illéan government retains its power over the people is by controlling the information they receive. After all, the country's biggest news show is shot on location in the palace. That doesn't seem too fair and balanced to us.
Quote #8
I began to wonder just how much we knew about the rebels. Maybe I just didn't understand, but I didn't think they could be blamed for everything that was wrong with Illéa. (14.80)
The more we hear about the rebels, the more we doubt the Illéan government's official narrative regarding the conflict. It just doesn't add up. In fact, now that we're doing the math, it seems like the government conveniently uses the rebels as bogeymen to scare its people. That's a classic technique from the totalitarian playbook.
Quote #9
"So a new nation was formed under Gregory Illéa's name and leadership. [...] He was just a private citizen who donated his money and knowledge. And he changed everything." (17.20)
We gain some insight into the formation of Illéa during the girls' history lesson, and it's an interesting story to say the least. How could some random dude just start a country? Why would he do that? And why did he create this infernal caste system? Unfortunately, this is one mystery that doesn't get revealed in The Selection—guess we'll have to wait for the sequel on that one.