Ramona and Her Mother

“[I]f she gave Willa Jean a present today, she would not only have the fun of giving, but of knowing the grown-ups, would think, Isn’t Ramona kind, isn’t she generous.”

Ramona displays a complex thought process as she decides to give Willa Jean a gift. She has internalized the notion that giving is better than receiving, but she is also aware that giving the gift will make her look grown-up to the adults—Willa Jean is basically an afterthought.

“Even though she felt she should be outgrowing bears, she longed to hold that bear, to put her arms around him, hug him close and love him.”

Ramona is torn between her childlike impulses—snuggling a plush bear—and her self-consciousness that tells her she should be “outgrowing” that kind of thing. She judges herself against an abstract but powerful standard, articulated as the “should be.” This is a standard that, importantly, comes from Ramona herself and not anyone telling her what to do. In many ways, Ramona judges herself more harshly than others do.

“Conversation died, and the party died, too.”

The narrator’s wry comment expresses the mood of the adults’ party, demonstrating how this point of view can encompass both Ramona’s perceptions and a more broadly-shared reality.

Until now she had fastened together whatever she was making with Scotch tape or a stapler. Now Ramona felt the time had come for her to advance.”

Creativity and crafting are critical parts of Ramona’s personality throughout the series. This passage references an earlier novel in which she attempts to make a shoe from paper and staples. Being allowed to use the sewing machine instead marks a significant milestone.

“Her mother was always saying everyone must be patient with Beezus when she was cross because Beezus had reached a difficult age, but what about Ramona? Her age was difficult, too—not old enough to sit down with her mother and sew something she wanted to sew and too old to go pulling out a whole box of Kleenex and flinging it all over the house like Willa Jean. People should not think being seven and a half years old was easy, because it wasn’t.”

Many of the conflicts that Ramona experiences throughout the novel are articulated in this passage. She sees her mother’s concern for Beezus as a zero-sum game; if her mother understands that Beezus is at a “difficult age,” she cannot acknowledge Ramona’s struggles. Ramona’s difficulties, as she understands them, come from a sense of not fitting in anywhere, including her own family, and of experiencing contradictory desires and impulses on a regular basis. Having failed to realize the slacks for Ella Funt despite being allowed to use the sewing machine, Ramona fantasizes about regressing to toddlerhood, as embodied by the blissfully unaware Willa Jean.

“She seized the tube. How fat and smooth it felt in her hand.”

Ramona experiences the world intensely, and the feeling of the toothpaste tube is no exception. She had held herself back from touching Willa Jean’s bear, but now that the tube is in her hand, she is almost powerless to resist squeezing it.

“Ramona thought yesterday was a long time ago, hardly worth mentioning. ‘Everybody picks on me,’ she said.”

Ramona’s day begins with what feels like a litany of criticism from her family: don’t run in hall, don’t leave dirt on the soap or wipe it on the towel. However, Ramona has not done any of those things that particular morning, and she resents that yesterday’s behavior is still being held against her. Her desire to be good on this particular morning fails to have the desired effect, leading her to feel like her entire family is against her.

“‘We could use Scotch tape,’ said Ramona, who felt that almost anything could be accomplished with Scotch tape.”

Ramona demonstrates her optimism and resourcefulness as she and Howie build their boat. However, it also alludes to the more resounding theme of anxiety throughout the novel. Not everything, especially families, can be repaired with tape.

“If she got into any more trouble, maybe Mrs. Kemp would not want to look after her. Then her mother could no longer work in Dr. Hobson’s office and would have to stay home. Ramona quickly squashed a deep-down thought that she would like to have her mother stay home again.”

The incident with the bluing is not the only time Ramona has run into trouble at the Kemps’, and she suddenly becomes anxious that the day’s adventures might have larger consequences. However, Ramona does not allow herself to pursue this line of thinking, because the idea of her mother not being able to work anymore is so attractive. As with many of her thoughts, Ramona keeps this one private.

“Rain slanted through the beams of the car lights, the windshield wipers splip-splopped, the family was silent.”

This sentence captures the contrast between the noise of the windshield wipers and the silence in the car, as Ramona experiences it. The gloomy weather matches the Quimbys’ collective mood and provides room for Ramona to ruminate that no one loves her.

“Ramona made a face as she reached for the place mats. ‘Daddy, I bet your grandmother didn’t really say all the things you say she said.’

“‘If she did, she must have been a dreadful bore,’ said Mrs. Quimby, who was beating batter as if she were angry with it.

“Mr. Quimby looked hurt. ‘You didn’t know my grandmother.’”

Ramona inadvertently provokes an argument between her parents when she makes an innocent comment about her father’s grandmother that brings her mother’s sarcasm to the surface. The exchange is a master-class in displacement, for the argument is no more about grandmothers than Mrs. Quimby is angry at the pancake batter. However, Ramona’s anxious reaction to this conversation demonstrates that she feels responsible for setting her parents off.

“The drop of water she flicked on the griddle refused to dance.”

In the middle of the ongoing argument about grandmothers, Mrs. Quimby puts water on the griddle to test if it’s hot enough. The passage personifies the water droplet as if it refuses to comply. Nothing about the dinner is going well, including the skillet, which is taking too long to preheat.

“Scrimp and pinch to make ends meet, thought Ramona, liking the sound of the words. She would remember them.”

Language and the sound of words are common motifs in the Ramona series, as Ramona will often repeat words that she enjoys. Her father uses these words to describe their need for frugality, but Ramona doesn’t comprehend the weight of their meaning and only likes them for their pleasing sound. Thriftiness and financial restraint become a theme throughout the novel and the series’ successive books, as the family recovers from Mr. Quimby’s unemployment and everyone must make sacrifices to preserve their financial stability.

“During the daytime she had preferred books about steam shovels, the noisier the better, but at night- bears, nice bears, and bunnies.”

This passage alludes to the first book in the Ramona series, in which she becomes obsessed with Mike Mulligan the Steam Shovel and forces her family members to read it repeatedly. At night, Ramona desires to read only about cuddly animals, revealing her need for comfort and security. The fact that she is comfortable with both of those sides of her personality marks an expansion of her ability to accept contradiction, even when it comes from herself.

“The whole world seemed gray and cross.”

Foul weather is a motif in the book because it is winter and often raining, preventing the girls from playing outside. This passage uses pathetic fallacy, as the weather mimics the characters’ moods. Ramona feels everyone is just as disagreeable as the weather.

“Ramona the pixie sounded much nicer than Ramona the pest as she had so often been called by Beezus and her friends.”

The second book in the series is titled Ramona the Pest. Ramona hated being called a pest, but now enjoys the positive reactions that her new haircut is getting. The irony is that a pixie is a mythical creature with short hair that is often portrayed as a mischievous young child.

“Snip-snip-snip went her bangs.”

Ramona’s salon haircut is a monumental moment, as it is the first time someone other than her mother has cut her hair. Ramona’s straight bangs have been a hallmark of her character, but the stylist shapes them into a point, giving her a new look that reflects how she is growing up and changing.

“One evening, when Ramona had turned from a pixie into a rabbit, she held her feet close together and, twitching her nose, went hopping down the hall. Thud. Thud. Thud.”

Like most children, Ramona enjoys mimicking animals and engaging in imaginative play. Once her mother calls her a “little rabbit,” Ramona pretends to be a rabbit, even twitching her nose, to get her mother’s attention.

“[S]he snuggled down, warm and cozy as a little rabbit in a nest, in the pajamas that had never been worn by her sister.”

Most of Ramona’s wardrobe is hand-me-downs from Beezus, which is part of her family’s thriftiness. Getting new pajamas that have only ever belonged to her is a triumphant moment for Ramona. Additionally, the soft pajamas aid in her fantasy of being a rabbit.

“Ramona slowed down to investigate crocus buds like tiny yellow and blue Easter eggs that were pushing up through a neighbor’s lawn.”

The passage uses a simile to compare the new spring buds to Easter eggs. Spring and Easter symbolize rebirth and renewal, just as Ramona and her family are entering a new season of life.

“The halls were empty, recess was over, and she was late, but still she skipped because she felt as light and cool as a spring breeze.”

Ramona’s soft pajamas become irritating and torturous when she wears them under her clothes. Once free of the burden of the pajamas and her secret, she feels physically and emotionally lighter.

“The sound of her teacher’s name gave Ramona a strange feeling, as if she were in an elevator that had suddenly gone down when she expected it to go up.”

Ramona only hears part of her mother’s phone conversation and assumes Mrs. Rudge has breached their trust. The passage uses figurative language to compare the sinking feeling in one’s gut to a jolting elevator ride.

“‘This looks like nine on the Richter scale,’ said Mr. Quimby, as if Ramona were an earthquake.”

Scientists use the Richter scale to measure an earthquake’s power and potential for destruction. Mr. Quimby uses hyperbole to rate Ramona’s tantrum as an earthquake that registers nine on the Richter scale and would be catastrophic.