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Dr. Bennett
Dog is a metaphorical beast who guards the boundary between the comforts of home and the world at large. In one of the story’s metaphorical tales, Edward has to cross Dog’s path to leave Ashland, his home town. Dog is vicious and bites the fingers off people who attempt to cross his path. Many people who are afraid to risk facing Dog end up living out their lives in the place that had no name, lingering as disfigured, empty shadows of themselves, haunted by their unfulfilled dreams. Edward, in contrast, is able to muster the courage to leap past Dog, thus taming his fear of the unknown and emerging into the world at large.
Dog Quotes in Big Fish
The Big Fish quotes below are all either spoken by Dog or refer to Dog. 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: The Day He Left Ashland
Quotes
“That’s what this place is all about, Edward. Getting used to things […] This rain, this dampness—it’s a kind of residue. The residue of a dream. Of lots of dreams, actually.”
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“I—I wouldn’t trust that dog […] I just wouldn’t take the chance, son. He didn’t get you before, but you never know about next time. S’unpredictable. So sit tight.”
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My father took his chance and ran through the opening and didn’t look back. He ran through the darkness until it became light again, and the world turned green and wonderful […] When the road ended he stopped and breathed and found that Dog was right behind him, tongue lolling, and when he reached my father, he rubbed his warm body down against his legs.
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And the sun set, and the moon rose, and the water in the lake began to gently ripple, and in the white light of the moon then he saw the girl, her head breaking the surface a good ways out, the water flowing through her hair and back into the lake, and she was smiling.
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Dog Quotes in Big Fish
The Big Fish quotes below are all either spoken by Dog or refer to Dog. 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: The Day He Left Ashland
Quotes
“That’s what this place is all about, Edward. Getting used to things […] This rain, this dampness—it’s a kind of residue. The residue of a dream. Of lots of dreams, actually.”
Related Characters:
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
“I—I wouldn’t trust that dog […] I just wouldn’t take the chance, son. He didn’t get you before, but you never know about next time. S’unpredictable. So sit tight.”
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
My father took his chance and ran through the opening and didn’t look back. He ran through the darkness until it became light again, and the world turned green and wonderful […] When the road ended he stopped and breathed and found that Dog was right behind him, tongue lolling, and when he reached my father, he rubbed his warm body down against his legs.
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
And the sun set, and the moon rose, and the water in the lake began to gently ripple, and in the white light of the moon then he saw the girl, her head breaking the surface a good ways out, the water flowing through her hair and back into the lake, and she was smiling.
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
