How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Volume.Chapter.Paragraph) and (Volume.Chapter.Section.Paragraph)
Quote #7
"I've told you before, I don't comprehend religion, although conviction is a concept I'm beginning to get. In any case, someone with a real religious conviction is, I propose, a religious convict, and deserves locking up." (2.2.4.5)
Elphaba may claim not to understand religion, but she certainly seems to have a handle on certain aspects of it: passion, belief, conviction, etc.
Quote #8
"Hence," observed Crope, "your aversion to all water. Without your knowing it, it might be a baptismal splash, and then your liberty as a free-range agnostic would be curtailed." (2.2.4.6)
This is probably the best explanation we've heard for Elphaba's severe water-phobia. And even if it's not true, it's at least more entertaining than something like a weird skin allergy. Crope's description of a "free-range agnostic" also gives us great insight into Elphaba's character. For her, agnosticism is a type of freedom. As an agnostic, she's not bound to any one belief system.
Quote #9
"You have no soul," he teased her.
"You're right," she answered soberly. "I didn't think it showed."
"You're only playing word games now."
"No," she said, "what proof have I of a soul?" (3.9.2-5)
Elphaba definitely does play word games a lot, but she also plays the part of a skeptic. We wonder what Elphaba would consider as "proof" of a soul.