The Great Gilly Hopkins Essay, Research Paper
The Great Gilly Hopkins was an interesting novel with many themes, some were
hidden and others were obvious. Katherine Paterson has a way of telling a story in a
manner that is interesting to the reader yet has a very strong theme, life is what you make
of it. Gilly made life hard for herself and never realized it until it was too late. Paterson
also had a hidden theme of prejudice. Family was another main theme to this book. This
story will help any child who is having difficulties with family or dealing with who they
really are.
In the beginning of this book Gilly is a selfish and immature little girl who hasn?t
learned what life is all about. She has this attitude that she is invincible to pain and will
not allow anyone to hurt her. She has it set in her mind that this new foster home will not
work and she will do anything in her power to get to her mother. In the first chapter Gilly
thinks to herself ?Nobody wants to tangle with the great Galadriel Hopkins. I am too
clever and too hard to manage. . .Here I come, Maime baby, ready or not.? Right from
the start Gilly is not even going to give her new family a chance. Gilly has made that
decision and she is forced to face the consequences. As the story progresses Gilly begins
to realize that she was wrong about Trotter, W.E., and Mr. Randolph. She actually begins
to care about them but it was too late. The letter had been written and the her biological
family had come to take her away from the life she loved. Gilly didn?t realize that she had
done this to herself until she went to her grandmothers. This book teaches children that
the decisions they make will shape the life they have. Paterson is teaching children a very
valuable lesson that they will be able to utilize throughout their life.
Hidden within The Great Gilly Hopkins is a very racial theme. This story was
written in the !970?s and show the signs of the time. Back then people were still very
prejudiced and were not as exposed to black people. Gilly was so shocked when she first
went to get Mr. Randolph for dinner. She ran back to Trotter and cried, ?He?s gone.
Some weird colored man with white eyes came to the door. . .I never touched one of
those people in my life.? Gilly had never been exposed to colored people and when she
was she reacted in a mean way. She was appalled at the fact that she even had to deal
with them. The time period shows the way that people felt about different races and how
children were brought up. Gilly realized that Mr. Randolph was a sweet old man who
could t
despised. Ms. Harris was Gilly?s teacher and would not allow Gilly to bother her. Gilly
went out of her way to make life miserable for Ms. Harris because her other schemes
didn?t work. She wrote out a card that was very hurtful. Gilly?s prejudice was very clear
in her closing words, ?person with a vested interest in maintaining this point of view.? It
was very hateful and mean and that is exactly what Gilly had intended. Her scheme
backfired when Ms. Harris thanked her for the card. I think after that Gilly began to really
respect Ms. Harris and lose some of her prejudices. This book shows children how hurtful
prejudices can be and how they are wrong. Paterson dealt with this sensitive issue in a
very meaningful and heartfelt manner.
Gilly was a foster child who had been bounced from family to family. Every time
she let her guard down she was hurt. Gilly dreamed about her real mother and how
wonderful she was. The problem was that Gilly never really knew her mother or what a
family really was. When she lived with Trotter she began to feel like she belonged to a
family. She learned what a mother, brother, and uncle were like. When she finally was
reunited with her mother her dream was shattered. At the end of the novel Gilly
understood now that she had made a mistake and called Trotter in tears. ?I?m coming
home. . .Trotter, it?s all wrong. Nothing turned out the way it?s supposed to.? Trotter
helped Gilly to understand that life wasn?t easy but she must be strong and make the best
of it. Gilly loved Trotter dearly and wanted to do this for her to show her love and
appreciation. Gilly had finally found her family and her grandmother. She was willing to
make her new family work. Dealing with family problems are difficult for children and this
story shows children that it isn?t always easy but it can be worked out in the end.
The Great Gilly Hopkins was a unique novel that touched on many issues closely
related to children and their experiences. Katherine Paterson chooses a wonderful
technique to introduce children to many difficult subjects. She does this by using a
character that many children can understand and empathize with. Throughout this novel
she used such themes as: life is what you make of it, prejudices, and family. Overall The
Great Gilly Hopkins was a well written novel and deserved the Newberry Award that it
received.
THE GREAT GILLY HOPKINS
KANDACE HENRY
CHILDRENS LITERATURE
TUES-THURS 100 – 230
FEB. 4, 1999