Post-War England
The story begins with Billy describing an abandoned building in his neighborhood with faded lettering indicating it was once called The Grubber. He explains this is an outdated term for a sweet-shop from the “olden days.” Since there are no signs it has been anything since it was The Grubber, the fact that it has remain abandoned for quite some time seems to situate it as a symbol of the England which never quite recovered from the wrath of the Nazis and the effects of nightly bombing during World War II.
The Animals
Into this post-war ramshackle building moves a new window cleaning company curious owned and operated by three distinctly different animals native to regions separated geographically in a general sense. They each bring unique natural qualities to the job respective to their particular species. The combination of everything going on here facilitates an interpretation of the giraffe, monkey and pelican as symbols of poor immigrants from distant lands flooding into England after the war who were forced by economic deprivation to live and work in rundown neighborhoods and buildings, thus altering the cultural and ethnic conditions of those neighborhoods.
The Kitchen Sink
As the animals move into the former sweet-shop and commence the process of altering the past to fit with the changing conditions of cultural evolution, Billy watches as various old pieces of furniture come flying through the window: a porcelain lavatory pan, birdcage, bed, rocking horse and sewing machine. Most tellingly, however, is that among these items is a kitchen sink. So, in effect, the animals have tossed out everything including the kitchen sink, which represents the proverbial final element of change in any wholesale renovation, be it room décor or neighborhood ethnicity.
The Duke
The Duke lives in a mansion so big it has nearly 700 windows to clean. The estate on which the mansion is located is so vast and elegant it requires twenty-five gardeners. Orchards of trees produce delicious cherries and apples. Inside the house is a collection of jewelry so valuable that the Duchess sings songs about her diamonds. While employed merely to clean the windows, the animals foil a notorious burglar known as the Cobra who is attempting to steal that jewelry. As a reward thwarting the attempted robbery, the Duke the giraffe, pelican and monkey the biggest barn on his estate as a private residence equipped with heating and water and a kitchen. In return, all he asks is for them to keep his windows clean and help pick his cherries and apples and occasionally entertain him. Within the post-war allegory, the Duke represents the British welfare state where the animals no longer have to be privately employed, but receive benefits from the state in exchange for being good citizens.
The Cobra
Of course, the stimulus for this benevolence is not how well the animals did the job for which they were hired—cleaning the windows—but for thwarting the burglar and protecting the valuables inside. The offer which the Duke extends is the animals’ (foreigners who become immigrants) reward for protecting the Duke (England) from the danger posed by the Cobra (Hitler).
