How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
Meg looked. The dark shadow was still there. It had not lessened or dispersed with the coming of night. And where the shadow was the stars were not visible.
What could there be about a shadow that was so terrible that she knew that there had never been before or ever would be again, anything that would chill her with a fear that was beyond shuddering, beyond crying or screaming, beyond the possibility of comfort? (4.131-132)
The focus on time here is interesting – the Black Thing is not just the worst thing at this moment, but the worst thing that every was or ever will be. It's interesting too that the text focuses on Meg. On the one hand, it makes sense, since she's our window into the text (see "Narrator Point of View"), but since the text has also emphasized the limitations on her understanding, focusing on the Black Thing being the worst thing she could experience doesn't close off the option of there being something so bad it's beyond Meg's ability to comprehend it.
Quote #2
Calvin turned, rejecting the dark Thing that blotted out the light of the stars. "Make it go away, Mrs. Whatsit," he whispered. "Make it go away. It's evil." (4.136)
Calvin's reaction seems almost visceral – without any knowledge of what the Black Thing is or does, he immediately judges it to be evil. Perhaps evil is beyond reason?
Quote #3
Again Mrs. Which's voice reverberated through the cave. "Therre willl nno llonggerr bee sso manyy pplleasanntt thinggss too llookk att iff rressponssible ppeoplle ddo nnott ddoo ssomethingg abboutt tliee unnppleassanntt oness." (5.85)
Mrs. Which points out that there's no opting out of the good vs. evil smackdown, because everyone will be affected by the outcome.