The Velveteen Rabbit

Character Analysis

Every story needs a hero…and you probably couldn't ask for one more unassuming (or adorable) than the Velveteen Rabbit.

Bashful Bunny

The Velveteen Rabbit starts out life as a Christmas gift for the Boy. That should be a he ego-booster, but the Velveteen Rabbit is shy guy.

Right from the beginning, he lacks confidence and struggles to fit in with the other toys, because he's not as shiny and mechanical as some of his fellow toybox-dwellers:

No one thought very much about him. He was naturally shy, and being only made of velveteen, some of the more expensive toys quite snubbed him […] The Rabbit […] understood that sawdust was quite out-of-date and should never be mentioned in modern circles […] The poor little Rabbit was made to feel himself very insignificant and commonplace. (3)

Poor little guy. He's got serious issues with self-esteem.

But that might have something to do with his general demeanor (rabbits are notoriously shy) as well as being surrounded by snotty wind-up toys. The Rabbit just seems timid and afraid. Even when the Skin Horse explains all about being Real, the Rabbit isn't too jazzed about it. He's worried that being Real sounds scary—the process of becoming real will hurt and be really uncomfortable. Maybe it's better to stay an anxious little stuffed Rabbit than to risk the pain of becoming Real.

There, there. It gets better, little buddy.

Friends for Real

When the Velveteen Rabbit becomes friends with the Boy, this is really the turning point in his little toy life. Because the Boy loves and values him, the Rabbit is able to see the value in himself. He becomes more confident. He opens his heart to the possibility of love and friendship and eventually, he becomes really, really Real.

And no one is gonna tell him different. Definitely not some wild rabbits:

"He doesn't smell right!" he exclaimed. "He isn't a rabbit at all! He isn't real!"

"I am Real!" said the little Rabbit. "I am Real! The Boy said so!"

And he nearly began to cry.Just then there was a sound of footsteps, and the Boy ran past near them, and with a stamp of feet and a flash of white tails the two strange rabbits disappeared.

"Come back and play with me!" called the little Rabbit. "Oh, do come back! I know I am Real!" (44-47)

So, obviously, this exchange is super-upsetting for the Velveteen Rabbit. These wild rabbits don't think he's Real! But he doesn't really doubt his status—he knows that he's Real because the Boy said he was Real. The Rabbit has experienced love and friendship he knows he's not going back.

It looks like our timid little bunny has learned a lesson in self-confidence.

Beauty Is Only Fur Deep

All the while, the Velveteen Rabbit is becoming super beat up and worn down. Luckily, he's feeling the love too much to care:

Weeks passed, and the little Rabbit grew very old and shabby, but the Boy loved him just as much. He loved him so hard that he loved all his whiskers off, and the pink lining to his ears turned grey, and his brown spots faded. He even began to lose his shape, and he scarcely looked like a rabbit any more, except to the Boy. To him he was always beautiful, and that was all that the little Rabbit cared about. He didn't mind how he looked to other people, because the nursery magic had made him Real, and when you are Real shabbiness doesn't matter. (51)

Sure, the Rabbit has flaws, but he embraces them. He's happy with who he is because he's loved unconditionally. He may be missing his whiskers or fur in spots, but he's confident in himself. He's knows that he's loved and that love has given him the ability to feel genuine emotions in return. Yeah, it's made him vulnerable, but it's also opened him up to awesome things.

At this point, the Rabbit has come a really long way. He's not scared or anxious. He doesn't care what people think of him. He's just focused on being the best him he can be.

Real Heartbreak

In the end, it all goes pretty bad for this little Rabbit. Sure, he got to experience the ultra highs of being unconditionally loved, but then he gets to experience the heartbreak that goes along with that.

Love and loss: two sides of the same coin.

As the Rabbit is waiting to be burned in the bonfire, he spends some time thinking about his life and his thoughts turn pretty melancholy:

He seemed to see them all pass before him, each more beautiful than the other, the fairy huts in the flower-bed, the quiet evenings in the wood when he lay in the bracken and the little ants ran over his paws; the wonderful day when he first knew that he was Real. He thought of the Skin Horse, so wise and gentle, and all that he had told him. Of what use was it to be loved and lose one's beauty and become Real if it all ended like this? (63)

How can we blame him for thinking this? Isn't this the classic stuff that we all think at the end of a relationship? Why bother with love if you know it's just gonna make you miserable one day?

The Fairy seems to answer this question when she comes along. Yeah, love makes you vulnerable. It opens you up to heartbreak and sorrow and dozen other awful emotions that will leave you listen to Adele albums on repeat.

But love also makes you Real.

By allowing yourself to love and be loved in return you get to experience the full range of emotions. You get to connect with another person on a truly meaningful level. And, yeah, that person can hurt you, but that person can also make your life amazing, if only for a few seasons.

In the end, the Fairy makes the Velveteen Rabbit into a wild rabbit. It's the least she can do for a brave little guy who's given his heart and taken a chance on love.