For the fourth time in as many years, they were confronted with the problem of what birthday present to take to a young man who was incurably deranged in his mind.
-- Narrator (N/A paragraph 1)

Importance: This is the first line of the story. It is important because it refers to the main characters using a pronoun, which develops a sense of familiarity between the reader and the characters.

The subway train lost its life current between two stations and for a quarter of an hour they could hear nothing but the dutiful beating of their hearts and the rustling of newspapers."
-- Narrator (N/A paragraph 3)

Importance: This personification of the train foreshadows plot events, because this quote precedes a scene in which the parents discover that their son has attempted to commit suicide.

A few feet away, under a swaying and dripping tree, a tiny unfledged bird was helplessly twitching in a puddle.
-- Narrator (N/A paragraph 4)

Importance: This quote is important because it...