Understatement

"I didn't exclaim, the way I'd been doing when I'd come across other items that had mildly excited me."' PAGE 172

This quote refers to Kathy's reaction when she finally found the tape. She didn't know how to react to it. She wanted the exciting time with Tommy to continue and she was afraid that things would change when she found it. She used a form of understatement at first because she was skeptical. She was unsure of how to react. She was facing a dilemma between the tape and Tommy. Tommy wasn't even sure she had found it because of her lack of enthusiasm. Truly, Kathy was excited to find the tape, but she expressed her pleasure with understatement. She did not want to cause a scene in the store and felt as though the tape was something she should have outgrown. I think her understatement was partially because of embarassment and partly because of skepticism. The understatement emphasized how much fun Tommy and Kathy were having together. The fact that she would sacrifice the tape to keep spending time with Tommy reiterated how much she valued their time together. The understatement was effective because the friendship was evident and emphasized. Without the understatement, it would appear that the true motivation for the outing was solely to find the tape. To Kathy and Tommy the outing was more about spending time together.