"Some people might think that my mother is my biggest problem... but my mother isn't my biggest problem. Neither is my father... My biggest problem is my brother, Farley Drexel Hatcher."
This is the moment that first introduces readers to the book's antagonist: Peter's little brother, Fudge. This lets readers know from the get-go just how much Peter's life is affected by the trouble Fudge causes, and creates a sense of foreboding as readers move on to the book's second chapter, waiting to find out exactly what kind of shenanigans Fudge gets up to.
"You know, Dad," I said. "I only drank Juicy-O to be polite. I really hated it!"
"You know something funny, Peter?" my father said. "I thought it was pretty bad myself!"
This quote is an example of one of the book's themes of finding the silver lining, or the good in any bad situation. Losing the Juicy-O account because of Fudge's behavior was certainly hard for Mr. Hatcher, but he and Peter are able to find a bright side in it and have a bonding moment at the end of Chapter 2.
"Fudge, you will eat that cereal or you will wear it!"
Mr. Hatcher says this to Fudge after he has been refusing to eat food for a week. It is an example of his and his wife's different parenting styles. Though Mrs. Hatcher has reacted to Fudge's behavior with worry and concern, she has never truly disciplined Fudge for it. Mr. Hatcher, on the other hand, reaches the final straw and decides to crack down. This is what ultimately works for controlling Fudge's misbehavior, though this saying "Eat it or wear it!" becomes Fudge's new favorite phrase for the rest of the book.
"My mother's the meanest mother in the whole world! She loves Fudge more than me. She doesn't even love me anymore. She doesn't even like me. I'm not her real son... Nobody needs me around here... that's for sure!"
Peter says this to Dribble when he is angry at his mother for blaming him for the park incident resulting in Fudge losing his teeth. Though he says it in the heat of the moment, it shows his inner feelings of uselessness and his frustration with being ignored. He feels like Fudge is favored over him in his family, and he longs for attention and recognition from his parents. Luckily, Peter makes up with his mother the morning after saying this, and she apologizes for blaming him.
"Everything scares him. Especially birthday parties. But he'll be fine. Won't you, Sam?"
When the mothers come in with their children, bringing them to be guests at Fudge's third birthday party, the things they say about their kids foreshadow their bad behavior to come. Here, Sam's mother ironically says "But he'll be fine." Quickly, it becomes clear that he will not be fine; he cries throughout most of the birthday party and makes multiple scenes, exhausting Mrs. Hatcher, Peter, and Grandma until the party ends. The other children are badly behaved, too, showing that Fudge has his bad behavior in common with other children his age.
"I smiled. I guess the kid really looks up to me. He even wants to wear the same kind of shoes."
In Chapter 6, there are two instances in which Fudge needs Peter's example before he will do what he is told. The first is at the dentist, when Dr. Brown challenges Fudge to open his mouth as wide as Peter, and the second is in the shoe store, when Peter must pretend to buy saddle shoes so that Fudge will try on a similar pair. During all this, Peter realizes how much Fudge looks up to him, and is proud, for a minute, to be his big brother.
"Working together doesn't mean you give the orders and we carry them out."
As Peter, Jimmy, and Sheila argue over their project, Jimmy's quote reveals an important lesson about working together in a group. Group work is about sharing responsibilities equally, and listening to everyone's ideas. Sheila tries to take control of the project, which makes her team members angry and less likely to do good work. At the same time, Peter and Jimmy do not always listen to what Sheila has to say, even when she has a point. This project is a good opportunity for the fourth graders to learn important teamwork skills, and in the end, they succeed and create a successful project.
"Soon Fudge would be a famous television star and I would be plain old Peter Hatcher—fourth grade nothing."
This quote gives the book its title, Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing. Peter wants to avoid being a "nothing" at all costs; in other words, he wants attention and recognition from the people around him. He has felt ignored and passed over for Fudge since his little brother was born. In this case, when Fudge is chosen for the Toddle-Bike commercial, he is achieving actual fame and surpassing Peter by a mile. Peter feels that Fudge has done nothing to deserve this, and hates being in his brother's shadow.
"Wanted to touch the bears," Fudge said. "But bears are all gone."
This incident reminds us that Fudge is just a little kid, and even though he causes a lot of trouble, sometimes his motivations are totally innocent. Here, he is mesmerized by the movie and wants to go pet the bears he sees on the screen. Peter is frustrated that Fudge wandered off, but cannot help laughing at the reason he did so. Just like all young children, sometimes Fudge's imagination runs away with him.
"Fudge," my father said, taking him away. "This is your brother's dog. Maybe someday you'll have a dog of your own. But this one belongs to Peter. Do you understand?"
At the end of the book, Peter receives a dog as a gift that not only recognizes him for being mature and responsible, but also gives him something that belongs only to him, not to Fudge. Dribble was the first pet that belonged just to Peter, but Fudge constantly sneaking into Peter's room and eventually swallowing Dribble showed that he was not old enough to respect this boundary. Now, though, Fudge seems to understand that Peter needs privacy, and that the dog is his. Peter is glad to see his parents finally acknowledging the wish he has had all along.
