How we cite our quotes: (Act)
Quote #4
WILLIE: I just came back here to rest a few minutes, not because I needed booze. (3)
Willie tells a little lie to hide the fear he feels about going out into the world and to buy himself a little more time before he has to commit. O’Neill connects lies to fear throughout the play.
Quote #5
HARRY HOPE: What’s that? Can’t hear you. Don’t look fine to me. Looks as if it’d pour down cats and dogs any minute. (3)
How is Harry’s way of dealing with fear similar to Willie’s?
Quote #6
HARRY HOPE: Somehow, I can’t feel it’s the right time for me to go, Hickey, even now. It’s like I was doing wrong to her memory. (3)
When Harry feels fear, he quickly falls back onto the idealized version of the past he’s created for himself. Again, this is something he shares with others in the bar. The past and the future—just like the booze they drink—serve as escapes from the fears they have.