Instead of correcting it, though, my father was diligently reinforcing the error.
-- Diana (chapter 1)

Importance: This line serves as a metaphor for Diana’s life. In the beginning of the novel, Diana discusses how her father restores art. In this case, he restored an error, as the night sky was painted backwards. Diana spends the beginning of the novel focusing on her plan for her career, family, and relationships, unwilling to stray from it. She spends the rest of the novel learning that she should, in fact, depart from her plan and determine what makes her happy. If she had stayed the course and followed her original blueprint, she would have “reinforced the error,” resulting in perpetual discontent. Although it is harder for her to venture from her checklist (just as it would have been more difficult for her father to correct the painting than reinforce the error), it is the path which...