Now dim the light. He’s picking at her and teasing her. No, take it way down. She looks too anxious and sad. Keep it down. He looks too restless and angry. Down some more. She’s just trying to please him. It can stay down.
-- The Director (Story 1: "Exteriors")

Importance: This quotation demonstrates Collins’ careful creation of distinct voices in each story. All of “Exteriors” is a single monologue by a director preparing the shots of a film, so that all of the character information must be delivered in his directions. In this quotation, the love story within the movie is communicated in the director’s choice to continue dimming the lights and in his comments on the actor’s faces.

But I was fascinated by this deepening, perhaps because I was still young enough to be attracted to sorrow.
-- Narrator (Story 3: "The Uncle")

Importance: The woman in “The Uncle” narrates the story but is much less its focus...