Holes
The holes symbolize personal discovery. Freak is one of the five protagonists in the novel, and he is obsessed with digging holes. Freak's persistence in digging holes signifies the protagonists' desire to uncover the Hemmings family's secrets. When Freak reunites with his cousins, they confront their grandparents about their racist tendencies.
The grandparents (Gottfried and Hemmings)
The protagonists' grandparents in the novel symbolize bigotry. The reader learns that the Hemmings family is wealthy and racist. Gottfried and Hemmings have brought up their family believing they are superior to others. The protagonists (Freak, Marla, Malcolm and Loretta) are cousins, who decide to challenge their grandparents' racist foundations.
The potato
The potato symbolizes the family's racist legacy. Gottfried and his wife, Hemmings, are potato farmers. Potato farming has helped them to accumulate a lot of wealth throughout their lives. The couple is part of the Pennsylvania potato xenophobic farmers. The potato farmers are wealthy and discriminative. Consequently, the potato becomes an important symbol of Hemmings' family racist bequest.
