The thing is I don't actually feel anything about it at all.
-- Narrator (Don't Watch Face)

Importance: After Gabriel and his friends rob a woman at the start of the novel, Gabriel realizes he feels no remorse. He knows that the rich woman has no consciousness of him, nor his world. He determines because she does not think about him, he has no responsibility to think about her. Gabriel's conviction in this moment speaks to the author's thematic interest in parallel lives. Throughout the novel, Gabriel possesses a similar means of processing the world, where he considers how distant his life feels from those beyond his neighborhood.

Life is violent, things happen suddenly.
-- Narrator (South Kilburn)

Importance: In order to describe South Kilburn, Gabriel recounts a brutal and unexpected murder that happens in the area. He uses this anecdote to illustrate the unpredictability and savagery of life. However, in this passage, Gabriel is also reconciling his particular gang involvement...