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Elody
Ally is a member of Sam Kingston’s core group of friends. Sweet, lovesick, and, like Sam, still a virgin, Ally engages in the cruel behaviors she sees her friends and classmates perpetrate against one another in hopes of maintaining the social capital she has. Ally is fanciful and idealistic, often appearing to be the dreamer of the group (she muses aloud about chaos theory: the idea that a butterfly’s wings flapping in South America could create a thunderstorm in Tulsa, or vice versa, unknowingly raising questions of fate, chance, and inevitability in Sam) but hides behind a cruel, defensive exterior. Notably, she is the first one to throw a drink at Juliet Sykes at Kent McFuller’s Cupid Day party, and is often the first to warn the group that Juliet is approaching in the cafeteria or in the halls at school by singing The Talking Heads’ popular song “Psycho Killer” whenever she comes near. Ally’s character most deeply ties in with themes of popularity, status, and social capital, as well as cruelty and loyalty.
Ally Harris Quotes in Before I Fall
The Before I Fall quotes below are all either spoken by Ally Harris or refer to Ally Harris. 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:
).
Chapter 2
Quotes
Lindsay, Ally, Elody and I are as close as you can be, but there are still some things we never talk about. For example, even though Lindsay says Patrick is her first and only, this isn’t technically true. Technically, her first was a guy she met at a party when she was visiting her stepbrother at NYU. They smoked pot, split a six-pack, and had sex, and he never knew she hadn’t done it before. We don’t talk about that. We don’t talk about the fact that we can never hang out at Elody’s house after five o’clock because her mother will be home, and drunk. We don’t talk about the fact that Ally never eats more than a quarter of what’s on her plate, even though she’s obsessed with cooking and watches the Food Network for hours on end. We don’t talk about the joke that for years trailed me down hallways, into classrooms, and on the bus, that wove its way into my dreams: “What’s red and white and weird all over? Sam Kingston!” And we definitely don’t talk about the fact that Lindsay was the one who made it up. A good friend keeps secrets for you. A best friend helps you keep your own secrets.
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Chapter 4
Quotes
Ally takes a sip of the vodka she’s holding, then winces. “Lindsay was freaking out. I told you, she was really upset.”
“It's true though, isn't it? What I said.”
“It doesn't matter if it’s true.” Ally shakes her head. “She's Lindsay. She's ours. We're each other's, you know?”
I’ve never thought of Ally as smart, but this is probably the smartest thing I’ve heard in a long time.
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Ally Harris Quotes in Before I Fall
The Before I Fall quotes below are all either spoken by Ally Harris or refer to Ally Harris. 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:
).
Chapter 2
Quotes
Lindsay, Ally, Elody and I are as close as you can be, but there are still some things we never talk about. For example, even though Lindsay says Patrick is her first and only, this isn’t technically true. Technically, her first was a guy she met at a party when she was visiting her stepbrother at NYU. They smoked pot, split a six-pack, and had sex, and he never knew she hadn’t done it before. We don’t talk about that. We don’t talk about the fact that we can never hang out at Elody’s house after five o’clock because her mother will be home, and drunk. We don’t talk about the fact that Ally never eats more than a quarter of what’s on her plate, even though she’s obsessed with cooking and watches the Food Network for hours on end. We don’t talk about the joke that for years trailed me down hallways, into classrooms, and on the bus, that wove its way into my dreams: “What’s red and white and weird all over? Sam Kingston!” And we definitely don’t talk about the fact that Lindsay was the one who made it up. A good friend keeps secrets for you. A best friend helps you keep your own secrets.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 4
Quotes
Ally takes a sip of the vodka she’s holding, then winces. “Lindsay was freaking out. I told you, she was really upset.”
“It's true though, isn't it? What I said.”
“It doesn't matter if it’s true.” Ally shakes her head. “She's Lindsay. She's ours. We're each other's, you know?”
I’ve never thought of Ally as smart, but this is probably the smartest thing I’ve heard in a long time.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
