- "He couldn't get used to the idea that he was all alone on this tiny, deserted island. This was no coral atoll teeming with life. He looked around for company, but there wasn't any. At least, there wasn't any in sight. He might have been a castaway on an uninhabited world."
- "All this had been running through his mind as he made his way towards the center of the island. Now he stumbled suddenly upon a strange tree. It was one he had never seen before." (This is when Philip encounters the Manchineel tree)
- "This was the moment when he suddenly discovered that he was going to live. At least, he thought he was going to live. He might die, of course, he never knew. But for the present, he was going to live. He had had time to think about things." (This is when Philip realizes that he has to keep fighting to survive)
- "He could not see, of course. But as his bare feet encountered the soft sand, he could feel that it was a beach, and that the island had a beach. If there was a beach on this side, then there was probably a beach on the other side. And perhaps there were other islands near it." (This is when Philip realizes that there may be other islands nearby that he can escape to)
- "Suddenly he heard a terrible roaring in his ears. It was so loud that it made him dizzy, and he could not hear himself think." (This is when Philip is hit by the hurricane and loses his hearing)