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Full Title Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Author Roald Dahl; illustrations by Quentin Blake
Type of work Novel
Genre Children’s fiction
Language English
Time and place written Buckinghamshire England, 1964
Date of first publication June 1964
Publisher Alfred A. Knopf (first American edition, 1964); Allen & Unwim (first British edition, 1967); Alfred A. Knopf (revised edition, 1973)
Narrator Third person. The anonymous narrator is sympathetic to the heroes, Charlie and Mr. Wonka, and critical of the other children.
Point of view The narrator speaks in the third person with a subjective voice. The narrator follows Charlie’s point of view and speaks on his behalf, announcing his hardships and criticizing his competition.
Tone Light-hearted and humorous, even in its treatment of difficult topics
Tense Past
Setting (time) Present
Setting (place) An unnamed city; a small wooden house on the edge of a great city; a fabled chocolate factory
Protagonist Charlie Bucket
Major conflict Five children who have found golden tickets compete to see who will take over Mr. Wonka’s chocolate factory.
Rising action The newspaper announces that the Wonka chocolate factory will reopen its doors to the public and welcome the holders of five golden tickets hidden in Wonka chocolate bars. A race ensues to recover the golden tickets, the first four of which go to children who have serious character flaws. Charlie desperately hopes he will find a golden ticket.
Climax Charlie’s father loses his job, pushing his already poor family to the brink of starvation. Charlie finds a dollar bill in the street and, before handing it over to his mother, treats himself to two chocolate bars. One of the bars contains the fifth golden ticket.
Falling action Mr. Wonka’s factory exposes the character flaws of each of the other four children on the journey, with temporarily disastrous results for them. When only Charlie remains, Mr. Wonka congratulates him for winning the entire factory for himself and his family.
Themes Good things come in small packages; poverty vs. wealth; what goes around comes around
Motifs Vice; punishment; absurdity
Symbols The chocolate factory; golden ticket; glass elevator
Foreshadowing Charlie’s selflessness foreshadows his future fortune. If anyone should have reason to complain, it is Charlie. He is hungry, malnourished, and cold. And every day he walks by the opulence of the chocolate factory. Yet he never utters a single complaint. His soldierly attitude foreshadows his fortune, especially in light of the misfortune to befall the other children based on their characters.
