Character Analysis
Someone has got to be in charge around here. And that someone is named Nana.
Nana appears to be the Boy's nanny. He doesn't seem to have a father or mother who are active in his life. At least not active enough for the Velveteen Rabbit to notice them. Nana is the lady who cleans up the nursery, puts the Boy to bed, fetches him toys, and takes care of him when he's sick. So while there's a slim chance she might be a grandma or aunt, we're guessing she's the help.
Nana's finest moment is probably her laziest. She's the one who first gives the Velveteen Rabbit to the Boy to sleep with:
One evening, when the Boy was going to bed, he couldn't find the china dog that always slept with him. Nana was in a hurry, and it was too much trouble to hunt for china dogs at bedtime, so she simply looked about her, and seeing that the toy cupboard door stood open, she made a swoop.
"Here," she said, "take your old Bunny! He'll do to sleep with you!" And she dragged the Rabbit out by one ear, and put him into the Boy's arms. (15-16)
We feel you, Nana. Get that kid in bed and get some you time in. Soak your feet. Read some romance novels. You do you, Nana.
She's also the one who has to run out and find the Velveteen Rabbit when the Boy carelessly leaves him outside and declares he can't sleep without his bunny:
Nana had to come and look for him with the candle because the Boy couldn't go to sleep unless he was there. He was wet through with the dew and quite earthy from diving into the burrows the Boy had made for him in the flower bed, and Nana grumbled as she rubbed him off with a corner of her apron.
"You must have your old Bunny!" she said. "Fancy all that fuss for a toy!" (19-20)
You tell him, Nana. She was hunting for that bunny by candlelight, kid. The chores in this house just never end.
Okay, so Nana is stern and no-nonsense, but clearly she loves the Boy. She's obviously one of the people who stays by his side when he's sick. We even get the feeling she intercedes on the Velveteen Rabbit's behalf when the doctor demands that the bunny be burned. Check out the exchange:
Just then Nana caught sight of him.
"How about his old Bunny?" she asked.
"That?" said the doctor. "Why, it's a mass of scarlet fever germs!—Burn it at once. What? Nonsense! Get him a new one. He mustn't have that any more!" (58-60)
Did you catch that? The doctor must have said, "What? Nonsense!" in response to something that Nana said…or a look she gave. Judging by the doctor's order to get the Boy a new bunny, we're guessing she might have tried to protest that the Velveteen Rabbit was the Boy's favorite toy. Or that the Boy loves the little bunny. Of course, none of that mushy stuff worked on the doctor, but we get the feeling that Nana gave it her best effort.
So then, Nana really isn't so hard-nosed, now is she? She just wants what's best for the Boy. Deep down, she's actually got a warm and gooey center. We see right through you, Nana.