Character Clues

Character Analysis

Actions

Actions speak volumes in this book. For instance, consider Julia and Mack. Julia is the first person to give Ivan a crayon, while Mack sells Ivan's art at higher and higher prices, demanding that Ivan draw in order to earn his keep. Julia notices Ivan's anger as abnormal, which leads to deciphering his message about freeing Ruby and then championing this cause, whereas Mack once treated Ivan like a son and now views him as little more than dwindling dollar signs. Without saying a word, it's pretty clear who's good and who's not between these two.

Though Ivan likes to watch Westerns because it's super clear who's a good guy and who's a bad one on television, we think that if you just keep your eyes open, the same is true in this book.

Props: Art

For Ivan, art is sustenance for his soul. He says at one point, "When I'm drawing a picture I feel quiet inside" (art lesson.451), and given the generally depressing nature of this life in captivity at the mall, this is no small feat. For Ivan, art is personal and expressive… for Mack, however, it's business. Ivan's art has nothing to do with Ivan for Mack, and everything to do with sales, and this is one way that we understand that Mack doesn't care about Ivan as a living creature.

What can you deduce about Julia through her relationship to art? How about George?

Speech and Dialogue

Since Ivan is our narrator and this is his story, the things that other characters say really help us pin down who and how they are. For instance, Mack says about Ruby:

"Not the greatest specimen, but I got her cheap from this bankrupt circus out west." (stella helps.380)

It's one little sentence, but it leaves no room for confusion: Mack is one un-classy dude, who prioritizes money over just about everything. Mack's not the only one who blows up his own spot when he opens his mouth, though. Check out what Bob has to say about humans:

"Humans. Rats have bigger hearts. Roaches have bigger souls." (ruby's story.553)

Tell us how you really feel, why don't you, Bob. We're clued into Bob's hardened heart and cynical outlook when he speaks about humans, and while he certainly has good reason not to trust them (he was abandoned as a pup, after all), so do all of his animal friends. But you don't see them hating on humans quite so readily—in other words, Bob's words here let us know something fundamental about him as a character.

What other instances can you find of speech revealing true colors?