How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Of course Tommy and Annika went to school. Each morning at eight o'clock they trotted off, hand in hand, swinging their schoolbags. (4.1)
There's never any question about whether Tommy and Annika should attend school or not—we're simply told that of course they do. Does that mean that most kids should? Or does it simply mean that most people enroll their kids in school without question? Should people question the practice of registering and sending their kids to school at specific ages? Or does the system work for all but the most extreme cases, like Pippi? What do you think? What do you think Astrid Lindgren thought?
Quote #8
"Now, Annika, here's an example for you: Gustav was with his schoolmates on a picnic. He had a quarter when he started out and seven cents when he got home. How much did he spend?"
"Yes, indeed," said Pippi, "and I also want to know why he was so extravagant, and if it was pop he bought, and if he washed his ears properly before he left home." (4.40-41)
If you read this one closely, you can see that Pippi understands enough of the math to calculate that Gustav spent most of his money. (As she says, he was "extravagant.") So it could be that Pippi knows the answer to the teacher's question, just like she knew the capital of Portugal was Lisbon. Once again however, Pippi prefers to focus on the human aspects of the problem. Why did he spend the money? What did he spend it on? How's his personal hygiene? You can't deny they're good questions.