How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Section.Paragraph). Though the story has no explicit divisions, we created "sections" to make the paragraph numbers more manageable. Section one is the scene in the hotel room. Section two is the scene on the beach to the end of the story.
Quote #4
"Sharon Lipschutz said you let her sit on the piano seat with you," Sybil said.
[…]
"Next time, push her off," Sybil said. (2.27-37)
Sybil definitely has a harmless crush on Seymour.
Quote #5
"I was sitting there, playing. And you were nowhere in sight. And Sharon Lipschutz came over and sat down next to me. I couldn't push her off, could I?"
"Yes."
"Oh, no. No. I couldn't do that," said the young man. "I'll tell you what I did do, though."
"What?"
"I pretended she was you." (2.30-34)
Seymour's conversation with Sybil alternates between adult flirtation and child-like jokes.
Quote #6
The young man suddenly picked up one of Sybil's wet feet, which were drooping over the end of the float, and kissed the arch. (2.92)
This is the point in the story where the reader, if he or she has suspected any sexual motivation on Seymour's part, might re-evaluate. This movement seems to reveal reverence, rather than sexual desire.