We

by

Yevgeny Zamyatin

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on We makes teaching easy.

U Character Analysis

U is a desk monitor that works at D-503’s apartment building. D-503’s relationship with U is an ambivalent one: he is repulsed by her, frequently describing her as having “fish gills,” but he also feels affectionately toward her, seeing her almost as a maternal figure. Throughout We, U is critical of I-330’s attempts to lead D-503 astray. She feels a maternal instinct to protect D-503 from his animalistic impulses, and often comments on how sick or unlike himself D-503 behaves and looks. Symbolically, U seems to represent D-503’s ambivalence toward the One State: on the one hand, he feels repressed by her overbearing surveillance, but, on the other hand, takes comfort in her watchful, protective gaze because it keeps him in line. At the end of We, U’s desire to protect D-503 causes her to betray D-503, MEPHI, and the rebellion against the One State.

U Quotes in We

The We quotes below are all either spoken by U or refer to U. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Individuality vs. Collectivism  Theme Icon
).
Record 28 Quotes

“Who knows who you are…A person is a novel: you don’t know how it will end until the very last page. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be worth reading to the very end…”

Related Characters: I-330 (speaker), D-503, U
Page Number: 141
Explanation and Analysis:
Record 35 Quotes

“Because I…I was afraid, that if she was…that they would have…you would have…you would stop lov…Oh, I can’t—I couldn’t have!”

I understood: this was the truth. A ridiculous, funny, human truth!

Related Characters: D-503 (speaker), U (speaker), I-330
Page Number: 185
Explanation and Analysis:
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U Quotes in We

The We quotes below are all either spoken by U or refer to U. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Individuality vs. Collectivism  Theme Icon
).
Record 28 Quotes

“Who knows who you are…A person is a novel: you don’t know how it will end until the very last page. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be worth reading to the very end…”

Related Characters: I-330 (speaker), D-503, U
Page Number: 141
Explanation and Analysis:
Record 35 Quotes

“Because I…I was afraid, that if she was…that they would have…you would have…you would stop lov…Oh, I can’t—I couldn’t have!”

I understood: this was the truth. A ridiculous, funny, human truth!

Related Characters: D-503 (speaker), U (speaker), I-330
Page Number: 185
Explanation and Analysis: