Question 1 The novel’s portrayal of the theme of the size is that the little people had very hard life due to their size. They were too small and up normal to the outside world. They appeared very different to the human being and were unacceptable. Their size also caused them to live a different and complicated life than the life of humans. It was a very long and a risky adventure when going out of the hole to get some food or anything need for their house. And we can imagen how hard it would be if we have anything blocking our way when wanting food to keep us alive.
The Borrowers” use size to convey the child perspective of everyday activities by describing the shapes and sizes of things and how that might benefit or bother the humans or the little people as well. Size has a very big impact on the everyday life of the humans and the little people. Little people have hard time picking up large stuff, but can easily escape from humans into a hole that is close to them. The outside world from where the little people lived was all created in sizes that best works or fits humans and not little people.
Therefore, they won’t always get what they want when going out and borrowing things that humans are using and still use them for the same need. But they did find some useful things when they discover the doll’s house and its furniture. The humans use the doll’s furniture for their children to play with, whereas the little people used them as things to sit on and used as house materials. Still, the little people and due to their size were unable to get the furniture right into their house.
But, the big boy, in the eyes and thoughts of the little people, was able to get some of the doll’s furniture into their house. Adults are the ones who control everything in the house, and children are weaker and would always need an adult’s help. Also, due to Pod’s size he had very hard time climbing the curtains, whereas human with their big size are able to just use their long hands to reach something on the curtains as the boy did when he helped Pod get the doll’s cup up to his house. Arrietty also faced a hard part that her father was able to do but not her, which was the safety pin that lucked the big gate.
When they went out borrowing together for the first time, Pod unlocked the pin and said, “‘You couldn’t do that,’ he remarked, dusting his hands; ‘too light’” (Norton). Also, in the nature of the little people adults are also the biggest help and the best that get things straightened and fixed. Question 2 I think that Mary Norton start the story with the dialogue between Mrs. May and Kate to, first grape the readers’ attention, and, second to be able to take the readers from realistic things to an imaginary world. Also, a fantasy story most have a realistic and an imaginary events or parts.
Or we can say believable parts and unbelievable parts to make the story seem real and become believable to the readers. I think the purpose of the character of Kate is to describe children’s thoughts and understanding of unrealistic things and how they react to life events. The purpose of the character of Kate is, also, to help the readers understand the story and to ask questions that the readers might have wanted to ask. Because the story was told to Kate as if it was read to the readers.
The story was told to Kate by Mrs. May and so as to the readers, but Kate asked Mrs. May things that the reader would need more clarification on to help understand the story and learn the theme that Mary Norton intended to inform the readers about in the story. What Kate figures out that might makes her and the young readers feel empowered is that being brave and learning to read and write are the powers of being a good and strong children. Arrietty created a very powerful feeling inside of Kate’s heart. Kate learned how Arrietty had the power to go out and try adults’ work and that can motivate her to try hard things in life, and know that learning new and harder things can greatly help in the future.
Also, the bravery that Arrietty had when she first met the boy and the way she started a friendly relationship can all motivate children to be brave and to know how overcome fears and try to come up with safe ways to help themselves, if possible. Also, learning to solve problems is very important and there were many ways that Arrietty can help children think of ways to solve their problems. Arreitty solved the problem of being inside all her life and convinced her parents to take her out to explore the outside world, and learn what goes on there.
That understanding could help her in her future. Also, she solved the problem with the boy that her parents thought they were in big trouble when the boy saw her father. She explained to her parents that not all humans are bad and that the boy was a friendly human being. She was also able to write to her uncle and know how he is doing, and what’s going on in his world over where he lived. Question 3 Arrietty represents the little people’s only child. She is thirteen years old turning fourteen next June. “‘Fourteen,” said Arrietty. “Next June,” she added’ ” (Norton 92).
She grow up lucked under the kitchen floor all her life and she really hated it. Arrietty explained to her father, “‘I don’t think it’s so clever to love on alone, forever and ever, in a great, big, half-empty house; under the floor, with no one to talk to, no one to play with, nothing to see but dust and passages, no light but candlelight and firelight and what comes through the cracks’” (Norton). She was well educated. She read a lot from her books that her father borrowed for her from the house library room. She had always wanted to explore and know everything about the outside world and how it looks.
She had never been outside and going outside from the hole she lived in was her dream. She was a very brave and smart girl. She showed her bravery when she first met the Boy and wasn’t afraid when he said he will hit her with the stick. She created a conversation instead of screaming and running from the big creature she saw. Homily represented the mother of Arrietty and the wife of Pod. Homily was a mother who cared for her house and child’s safety. She worked in her kitchen every day and made food for Arrietty and her father. She had always wanted the best for her family and for the future of her only child, Arrietty.
She was the one who encouraged Arrietty to go out and explore the outside world because she knew Arrietty would have to do the borrowing by herself one day when she grows older, and if she was ever left alone. Homily convinced Pod to teach Arrietty borrowing. She convinced him by saying, “‘supposed anything happened to you or me, where would Arrietty be—if she hadn’t learned to borrow’” ( Norton). She really hates emigrating and if it was to her she would chose anything but emigrating. Pod is the man of the house and the father of Arrietty. He lived known as the best barrowers that ever lived, that’s what his wife, Homily said about him.
He was a very good and caring father who took the dangers of borrowing and went out to borrow his family’s needs from upstairs and out of the house. “Boy” was the boy who came as a visitor from India to recover from an illness. He was the first human to see the little people. He was nine years old and was very clever to the Clock family. He didn’t harm the family as they thought he would when he first saw Pod, but rather turned out to be the best human being that ever helped them borrow. When Arrietty was out borrowing for the first time she was seen by the boy.
The boy did not frighten or violate Arrietty but was nice and happy to talk with her. Arrietty was so brave that she was able to create a discussion with him instead a fight or fear him. He tried to rescue the family when they were seen by Mrs. Driver, but wasn’t able to. Question 4 Mrs. Driver was the housekeeper and the cook. She was a mean and always described in a bad mood. She was a very harsh woman and had been presented as impolite to the boy. She wasn’t happy to see the boy at the kitchen when he was trying to help the little people and dragged him and lucked him up.
She also said to the boy, “‘you are a sneaking, thieving, noxious little dribbet of no-good! ’” (Norton). She seem not liking kids or anything that makes mess at her house that she works hard to clean and fix. Since the borrowers are considered things that might interrupted her work or might mess up things she had organized she didn’t like or accept them. She was afraid of them and couldn’t believe her eyes when she first saw them. Question 5 I think the boy was not named because the borrowers didn’t know his name, and he wasn’t known to them. He didn’t live for long at the house.
He was ill and was mostly laying on bad and his name wasn’t being called for the borrowers to hear and know it. Therefore, it was best to keep it unknown to make more sense. I know I might be wrong, but that’s what I think. I think that the author leaves the possibility that the entire story was the imagination of the boy, or even Mrs. May because they were the only two characters who believed in the little people and helped them escape. It could have only been the imagination of the boy who ones told his sister, Mrs. May, about the little people and knew everything about them.
Or Mrs. May who told the story to Kate, and made all this story up just to entertain Kate. Mrs. May didn’t know how to end the story and that shows that it was just a story she thought of at that moment. She was getting shy and ashamed of herself when Kate askes for more information of what happened to the little people after her bother was taken by Mrs. Driver when he was found trying to help them escape. “Mrs. Mary laid down her work. ‘Kate,’ she began in a startled voice, and then uncertainly, she smiled, ‘what makes you say that? ’ Her cheeks had become quite pink” (Norton).
