Anti-Immigration Xenophobia
Dahl expresses a certain pride in his country and countrymen as well as a certain disdain for some other countries throughout his body of work. In addition, one can interpret The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me through the political lens that criticizes immigration and the British welfare state. The section on the cuckoo also carries strong symbolic overtones of xenophobia as the bird is described as “a migrant” that takes advantage of the British Isles for warmth in the summer and then leaves it behind. The cuckoo is also taken to task for its promiscuity and curious hatching habits in which “no cuckoo has ever bothered to build its own nest or feed its young.”
Mosquito
Dahl has been accused by more than person of being a misogynist and more than one critic of creating female characters out of a deep-seated sense of misogyny. The chapter on February ends with an extended segment on moles before giving way to a short final paragraph that informs the reader this is the month when female mosquitoes emerge from hibernation. The chapter ends with a rather bizarre choice for its closing image: “And by the way, it is only the female mosquitoes that bite people. A curious and little-known fact such as this is worth tucking away in your memory.” And with that, the female mosquito becomes a symbol of Dahl’s possible contempt for women.
Family Portrait Christmas Cards
Dahl comes pretty close to identifying this as a symbol. “December” starts off with an overview of his emotional response to Christmas greeting cards. To wit: homemade cards are the best. Those featuring a photo of the family of those who have sent the card are a symbol of pompous conceit.
Train to Marseilles
“August” is a chapter that recognizes it as the month of going on vacation. Or, as the British put it, on holiday. This recalls for Dahl the time when he had turned sixteen years old and took a train ride by himself from Dover to Marseilles. For him, the journey there and back again is the symbolic trip from boyhood into manhood.
Guy Fawkes Day
November—of course—is the month in which Dahl recalls his childhood at school and the celebration of Guy Fawkes Day. His description sounds like almost like something from Lord of the Flies as basically unsupervised kids from seven to twelve years old were shooting off fireworks emblazoned with the warning: “Light-fuse and stand well away. Do not hold in hand.” This recollection comes to symbolize the changing world which—while Dahl fully admits that his experience as a boy is not something he would recommend—has become characterized by a pervasive application of overprotectiveness on the part of parents. While it may keep kids safer, it also has the effect of stunting their experience and imagination.
