44 pages • 1-hour read
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase
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Symbols & Motifs
The Wolves
The wolves are symbolic of the looming threat over Willoughby Chase. The images of the wolves howling and their physical presence are notable in the first few chapters of the novel. However, as the novel continues, the wolves slowly disappear from the description. Miss Slighcarp’s arrival and the arrival of the wolves at the station coincide. Similarly, a wolf attacks the train car Sylvia and Mr. Grimshaw share. Both instances tie the dangers of the wolves to the dangers of Miss Slighcarp and Mr. Grimshaw. The girls are threatened by a pack of wolves when they try to follow Miss Slighcarp and Mrs. Brisket, further connecting the symbolic threat of the wolves to the real threat of the humans.
However, as the children travel to London, they aren’t threatened by wolves, and when the girls return to the Chase, the wolves have left the area, symbolizing the resolution of the threat posed by Miss Slighcarp, Mrs. Brisket, and Mr. Grimshaw.
The Geese
The geese are directly connected to Simon, symbolizing The Importance of Friendship as they demonstrate how friendship is protective, warm, and secure. The geese are introduced when Simon brings the girls to his cave: “Sylvia was amazed to see a number of large white geese waddle after the boy into the cave […] One or two of them thrust out their necks and hissed, but the boy waved them back into the passage and flung them a handful of corn to keep them quiet” (55). Although they scare Sylvia initially, they provide an early warning system against the wolves, and they are entirely under Simon’s control.
Later, when Sylvia is ill, the geese likely save her life: “Thirty sleepy, grumbling geese were pushed unceremoniously to one side and then, when Sylvia was settled, allowed to perch all over and round her until only her face was showing” (127). The geese are also the primary reason Simon is headed to London, which helps give Bonnie the idea to go with him and ask Aunt Jane for help.
The geese finally save the children from Mr. Grimshaw in London: “A frantic cackling, hissing, and honking broke out on the stairs. There was a yell, a thud, more cackling, pandemonium!” (151). Without the warning from the geese, the children and Aunt Jane would all have been in danger. The geese ultimately act to save the children, representing their clear opposition to the threat posed by the wolves early on.
Clothes
Clothes figure prominently throughout the novel, forming an important motif that gives insight into the characterization and changing status of the characters. Clothes are introduced with the description of Miss Slighcarp’s buttoned-down, severe traveling outfit. They reveal a tightness and element of deception in her character.
The next instance of the clothes motif is the tenderness with which Aunt Jane helps Sylvia make her traveling outfit, which both reflects Aunt Jane’s love for her niece and Sylvia’s changing status, as she will now live at Willoughby Chase. When Sylvia gets to the Chase, Sir Willoughby and Lady Green have carefully arranged for Sylvia to have a wide range of clothing options to make sure she has beautiful and appropriate things. These clothes show how caring Sylvia’s aunt and uncle are, while reinforcing that Sylvia now lives an upper-class life instead of the lower-class lifestyle she had with Aunt Jane in London.
After Bonnie’s parents leave, Miss Slighcarp wears Lady Green’s dresses, which inspires Bonnie’s active rebellion and leads to the discovery of Miss Slighcarp’s plans. Miss Slighcarp’s usurpation of the clothes mirrors her usurpation of Willoughby Chase, signifying her attempt to rise in status and power. A change of clothes can also be disempowering: When Bonnie and Sylvia arrive at the school, their clothes are taken from them and replaced with identical brown overalls, designed to steal any sense of individuality from the students. The clothes Simon brings for their journey to London shows Pattern’s love for the girls, as well as how well Simon knows each girl, demonstrating the value of their friendship.
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