Gilbert the Giving Tree: The Cost of Altruism in Hedges's Novel Anonymous 11th Grade

The popular children’s book The Giving Tree tells the story of a tree that loves a boy so completely and selflessly that it is willing to give up everything it has for the boy. Gilbert Grape is a realistic version of just that—a young man who resentfully abandons his own dreams to support those of the people around him; in potent ways, the traits of strength, compassion, and sacrifice are seen in the novel What’s Eating Gilbert Grape by Peter Hedges. Gilbert is a sort of contorted Giving Tree who ultimately is willing to sacrifice his own happiness to support his dysfunctional, borderline insane family. Instead of moving out of small-town Endora and making a life for himself, he stays to support his family, which is on the verge of falling apart. Everyone around him wants something from him—his mother wants food and cigarettes, his mentally disabled brother wants him to stay forever, and his older sister Amy wants him to support the house—literally.

Gilbert must not only keep his family from figurative collapse, but he must find a way to keep the house from collapsing under the weight of his massive mother. His entire family depends on him and a part of him hates them because of it. This is evident when Gilbert is sitting in...