Important Quotations Explained
1. “Many times a day, he would see
other children taking creamy candy bars out of their pockets and
munching them greedily; and that, of course, was
pure torture.”
This quotation comes from the first
chapter of the story. It captures Charlie’s overwhelming desire
for chocolate, and it also helps to frame Charlie’s character. Immediately
before this, the reader has learned that Charlie is poor, cold,
and hungry. It would be reasonable to expect Charlie to be dissatisfied
with his life. However, the opposite is true. Charlie remains optimistic
in the face of all his trials and tribulations. He never complains
and is a consummate good kid. Charlie continues to earn the reader’s
sympathy by bearing the difficulties of his life with dignity.
2. “I insist upon
my rooms being beautiful! I can’t abide ugliness in factories! In we
go, then! But do be careful, my dear children!
Don’t lose your heads! Don’t get overexcited! Keep very calm!”
This quotation comes in the middle of
the story, just as the children enter the chocolate factory with
Mr. Wonka. The quotation is rife with absurdities and foreshadowing,
which are two common elements weaved throughout the entire text.
The entire string of words flowing from Mr. Wonka’s mouth is punctuated
by his excitement, yet he tells everyone to remain calm. This renders
his advice extremely difficult to heed. Mr. Wonka cannot abide ugliness,
yet he lets four extremely ugly children into his factory. By telling
the children not to lose their heads and mentioning that he cannot
abide ugliness, Mr. Wonka foreshadows the calamitous ends that four
of the children will meet.
3. “Mind you, there are thousands
of clever men who would give anything for the chance to come in
and take over from me, but I don't want that sort
of person. I don't want a grown-up person at all. A grown-up won't
listen to me; he won't learn. He will try to do things his own way
and not mine. So I have to have a child.”
In the last chapter of the book, Mr.
Wonka explains to Charlie his motivation for sending out the golden
tickets. He knows there is any number of adults who would be willing
to take over the helm of his factory. But if Mr. Wonka chooses an
adult successor, he will worry that they will change everything
about his beloved operation. He needs someone who will listen to
everything he says and who will do everything according to his precise
wishes. Only a dutiful and respectful child will fit the bill for
Mr. Wonka.
4. “Then out he comes! And now!
By grace!/A miracle has taken place!/This boy, who only just before/Was
loathed by men from shore to shore,/This greedy brute, this louse’s
ear,/Is loved by people everywhere!/For who could hate or bear a grudge/Against
a luscious bit of fudge?”
This quotation comes from Chapter 17,
after Augustus Gloop has fallen into the chocolate river. He is
sucked into a large pipe that leads to the fudge room, and everyone
is worried that he will be turned into fudge. The Oompa-Loompas
sing a song immediately following the disappearances of Augustus,
Veruca, Violet, and Mike. These songs employ humor in order to convey
a moral lesson. Here they joke about Augustus being transformed
from a greedy boy into a piece of fudge. Their lighthearted song
could seem cruel, but they are only joking: in fact, Augustus and
the other children eventually leave the factory in an improved condition.
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