You can’t have a story about giants without showing how tiny and weak humans are in comparison to them. This book takes it a step further by making the BFG a small giant and showing how weak he is compared to the other giants. It’s like a nesting doll with multiple layers of hugeness. It also allies Sophie with the BFG, because they’re both vulnerable when faced with the larger, hungrier giants.
Tiny vs. huge is not a new kind of story. Ever heard of David and Goliath? These are stories of overcoming (literally) tremendous odds by using bravery and intelligence instead of size and strength. We may not face human giants in our own lives, but we need these stories to help remind us that we can face difficult things. Go us.
Questions About Weakness
- If the BFG can lift Sophie in one hand, what else can he do with her (both positive and negative)? Why doesn’t he?
- What fairy tales do the scene where Sophie is in the Bloodbottler’s mouth remind you of? Why? What other fairy tales do parts of this novel evoke?
- Human bones appear in this story a few times. What’s with the focus on them?
- Why does Roald Dahl switch to Mr. Tibbs’ perspective in Chapter 20?
Chew on This
Sophie is the smallest character. So by having it be her who convince the BFG to help spread the word about and capture the giants, and getting the Queen in on it too, Roald Dahl is saying that little people can succeed in big deeds.
The first few chapters of the book pretend to be a horror story by establishing the real danger Sophie is in, before bringing out the humor.