High fit

Brightness controls whether you see the hopeful or dark side of what you're looking at. Phineas Knowles is staring at a face that, by his own description, lies about who he is — and he names that honestly. But he also finds something real: he completed the rite of passage without a single cut, doing it carefully and correctly. He doesn't pretend the difficult feelings aren't there, but he lets the small success matter. The brightness isn't maxed out, but it isn't off either.