The repeating phrase “Shit Don’t Mean Shit” is an important motif throughout the novel, illustrating the theme of How Literature Shapes Lives. The phrase first appears as Jimmy Gold’s catchphrase, and both Morris and Pete repeat the phrase throughout the novel to help them get through difficult situations. For example, Morris uses it as a sort of mantra to help survive his time in prison. The phrase proves particularly important during the novel’s climax, as Pete contemplates lighting the notebooks on fire. He realizes The Dangers of Obsession as he compares himself to Morris: They have both become obsessed with the Gold trilogy and allowed it to control their lives. However, Pete proves his ultimate freedom from Gold when he modifies the catchphrase to reflect his realization that his sister matters more than the notebooks: There is, in fact, “some kind of shit that means shit” (398). He, like Gold, realizes that life is not completely pointless, as the phrase “shit don’t mean shit” implies. Rather, his family actually does mean something to him. At the end of the novel, Jerome also gifts Holly with a shirt with the phrase printed on it, suggesting that the phrase was meaningful to them, as well.