Paul’s mother grew up in India before marrying Paul’s father. She values education highly and works to make sure that when the family moves from Westchester County in New York to Kingman, Arizona, that her sons will have as good an education as before. She finds a college prep reading list for Paul that gives him his love of literature, drives her sons to college prep courses over a hundred miles away, and works to get the school to offer AP classes. When Paul is diagnosed with cancer, she and the rest of the family also work to support Paul during his various treatments, remaining unwavering sources of comfort and security.
Paul’s Mother Quotes in When Breath Becomes Air
The When Breath Becomes Air quotes below are all either spoken by Paul’s Mother or refer to Paul’s Mother. 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:
).
Part 1
Quotes
My mother, afraid the impoverished school system would hobble her children, acquired, from somewhere, a “college prep reading list.” […] She made me read 1984 when I was ten years old; I was scandalized by the sex, but it also instilled in me a deep love of, and care for, language.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire When Breath Becomes Air LitChart as a printable PDF.
Paul’s Mother Quotes in When Breath Becomes Air
The When Breath Becomes Air quotes below are all either spoken by Paul’s Mother or refer to Paul’s Mother. 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:
).
Part 1
Quotes
My mother, afraid the impoverished school system would hobble her children, acquired, from somewhere, a “college prep reading list.” […] She made me read 1984 when I was ten years old; I was scandalized by the sex, but it also instilled in me a deep love of, and care for, language.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
