39 pages • 1 hour read
Andrew ClementsFrindle
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1996A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Child and Adult Perspectives
Broadly speaking, the children and adults represent different perspectives on imagination and education. These generalizations extend even beyond Westfield, as portrayed when the narrator describes people adopting the word frindle across the country: “In hundreds of little towns and big cities from coast to coast, kids were using the new word, and parents and teachers were trying to stop it. What had happened in Westfield happened over and over and over again” (84). Characters differ in personalities and opinions within and across generational lines (including opinions about the frindle debate); nonetheless, the children advocate for creative freedom and the adults cling to order and tradition.
First, the students value creativity; if presented with a way to make their learning more hands-on and fun, they will jump on the opportunity. Within Lincoln Elementary, Nick is most notorious for shaking up the routine. Still, Nick insists that he never intends to disrespect his teachers, and in fact, his academic intelligence often shines through his provocative schemes. For example, though Nick pointedly wastes class time by giving an hour-long report, he also uses that time to outline a legitimate and informative presentation that Mrs. Granger applauds. Later, when Nick instigates the frindle phenomenon, he draws inspiration from Mrs. Granger’s lesson about words to put a theoretical idea into practice: “Who says dog means dog? You do, Nicholas” (32). Nick decides that frindle means pen, and he shares the word with his classmates. However, though he claims pure intentions, some of his ideas serve to pointedly exasperate teachers. The oral report attempts to divert Mrs. Granger from her job; Nick orchestrates distractions in class that draw attention to frindles; he causes Mrs. Granger unnecessary grief when he encourages his classmates to individually ask her for a frindle. Nevertheless, Nick’s idea, for the most part, aims to infuse vivacity into his school: “No one had really wanted to make the teachers mad. It was just fun” (43). Nick later learns how to channel his creativity in ways that promote true good, but the frindle idea also serves as a valuable lesson for the adults as well.
While the children prioritize creativity and fun, adults view education and discipline as ways to prepare students for the real world. Nick’s parents—while still supporting Nick’s imaginative ideas—prepare him for the future by instilling good study habits and respect for others. They implement an unshakable “homework first” rule, which Nick’s older brother reinforces:
Nick had heard his older brother, James, groan and grumble about this rule for years, right up until he graduated from high school two years ago. And then James wrote home from college after his first semester and said, ‘My grades are looking great, because when I came here I already knew how to put first things first.’ That letter was the proof Nick’s mom and dad had been looking for (17).
Mrs. Granger also aims to prepare her students for the real world, embodying conventional educational values by executing quick, indiscriminatory discipline. She extends her gum-chewing punishment even to students she doesn’t teach: “And it didn’t matter to Mrs. Granger if you weren’t in fifth grade, because the way she saw it, sooner or later, you would be” (8). Even though younger students are informally outside her jurisdiction, she views the punishment as establishing proper expectations for the future. Though Nick’s imagination is applauded through the book, he also gives credit to the importance of what the kids perceive to be trivial rules.
Of course, the adults’ perspective—especially Mrs. Granger’s—isn’t explored without nuance. Furthermore, just as Nick and the other students learn wisdom from the adults in their lives, Nick serves as an inspiration to his parents and teachers. Even though Mrs. Granger appears to represent the epitome of structure and authority, she listens to her students. She initially opposes the frindle sensation because she believed it disrespected the robust tradition of language. However, when she sincerely considers Nick’s viewpoint, she recognizes that his unconventional new word still reflects the beauty and flexibility of language. Though the novel’s younger and older characters depict key elements of their respective worldviews, Clements allows them to learn from each other—not necessarily favoring one side but finding harmony amid various kinds of wisdom.
Actions and Consequences
At the beginning, when Nick formulates his ideas, he doesn’t anticipate all the implications of his actions—and for many years, he doesn’t need to. In third grade, Nick transforms his classroom into a beach scene, much to his teacher’s amusement. However, he doesn’t think much about how his idea affects people outside his classroom, such as the school’s increased heating bill after he turns up the thermostat or the sandy mess that awaits the janitor. These consequences are relatively minor, so Nick isn’t yet prepared for the surprising events following the frindle idea to unfold.
Nick creates his new word for his classmates’ and his own amusement. Though he is likely also motivated to prove his teacher wrong about how language functions by her own logic—he does flaunt his word in her classroom—he never intends to cause anyone true distress. Nick assumes that if he technically doesn’t break any rules, then he won’t have to face any consequences: “I haven’t been disrespectful. Honest. I did get everybody started using my word, but like you said, it’s not hurting anybody” (54). Nick doesn’t trespass any moral grounds and no one formally punishes him—excepting Mrs. Granger’s “I’m writing this punishment with a pen” detention (43), which he accepts almost as a martyr’s sacrifice. However, no one has to institute a punishment for Nick to witness the consequences. The frindle idea doesn’t just affect his classroom, or his school, or his community; it spreads to towns and cities across the country. The frindle phenomenon certainly raises important questions about how language evolves, from which communities could benefit, but now he also bears partial responsibility for heated conflicts that cause rifts between kids, parents, and teachers across the country. Unfortunately, once the new word spreads beyond his classroom, Nick becomes powerless to make the phenomenon go away.
The consequences also affect Nick on a personal level. He suddenly feels pressure to live up to his reputation: “Kids at school started expecting him to be clever and funny all the time, and even for a kid as smart as Nick, that was asking a lot. Every teacher, the office secretary, the principal, […] all seemed to be watching, always watching” (70-71). He also grows so wary of consequences that he stops acting on his ideas, thinking, “He would get into trouble. People would write about it in the newspaper. The principal would call his parents—anything could happen” (89). Nick’s reluctance to implement new ideas furthermore subdues his imagination and, with it, his excitement for life.
Noticing Nick’s change and wanting to reignite his imagination, Mrs. Granger encourages Nick to take risks again. She assures him that he didn’t do anything wrong, and she expects him to accomplish greatness in the coming years. Hearing these words from his (presumed) greatest adversary throughout the school year, Nick finds the courage to pursue ideas again. Though the text doesn’t explore his thought processes that lead to his next schemes, the nature of the ideas suggest that a more intentional purpose drives him. For example, when he convinces his schoolmates to boycott the subpar school lunches, the state superintendent eventually visits Westfield to investigate the “most successful school lunch program in the state” (93). This new idea seems to have more meaning, and Nick pursues it with his eyes wide open. Consequences are inevitable when enacting lasting change, and Nick learns to both embrace his imagination and acknowledge responsibility—both the good and the bad—for his dynamic ideas.
The Power of Language
Language exploration lies at the center of Nick’s story, providing both narrative and thematic impetus. By no coincidence, Nick draws inspiration from his fifth-grade language arts teacher, who has a special love for vocabulary and dictionaries; she firmly believes that “clear thinking requires a command of the English language, and fifth grade is the ideal time for every girl and boy to acquire an expanded vocabulary” (10). Nick, determined to make a notoriously difficult class fun, creates a new word that both defies tradition and aligns with Mrs. Granger’s philosophy of language: “Who says dog means dog? You do, Nicholas. […] But if all of us in this room decided to call [a dog] something else, and if everyone else did, too, then that’s what it would be called, and one day it would be written in the dictionary that way” (31). Nick tests this theory with the frindle idea, and though Mrs. Granger initially opposes it, she eventually realizes that his word aptly reflects the beauty and resilience of human language.
Once Nick’s word spreads beyond himself, he discovers he can’t take back what he started. He tells the reporters, “The funny thing is, even though I invented it, it’s not my word anymore. Frindle belongs to everyone now, and I guess everyone will figure out what happens together” (76). By necessity, language is a shared medium; it’s the means through which two or more people communicate with one another. Nick can embrace frindle with his whole being, but he alone cannot force everyone to adopt his word. Transforming language requires many individuals to accept a new word and its meaning, which occurs over the course of a decade in this novel: “And what was happening to Nick’s word during those ten years? Nothing fancy, nothing exciting. Words don’t work that way. Words either get used, or they don’t. And frindle was being used more and more. It was becoming a real word” (94). According to Mrs. Granger, a word is truly accepted when it becomes important enough to include in a dictionary. Language is a tradition in itself—an accepted way of understanding one another. Even a silly word such as frindle can merge into tradition if it stands the tests of time and relevance.
The adaptability of language is explored along with the complexity of its connotations. Connotation is highlighted through reporter Judy Morgan, who imbues pointed implications on purpose. When she writes the frindle story, she tells the truth from beginning to end; however, “it was the particular way she told the truth that got things hopping around town” (67). She sensationalizes the story to capture her audience’s attention: “Mrs. Granger, champion of the forces of order and authority, is battling hundreds of young frindle-fighters. Neither side is giving in” (68). When people use language, they wield the power to communicate more than simple dictionary definitions; they choose vocabulary that conveys emotions or recalls certain connections. In her news story, Judy Morgan illustrates the drama by using words associated with war, which heightens the story’s intrigue and excitement—if slightly out of proportion. Similarly, though Nick doesn’t intend to imbue his new word with connotations, using frindle instead of pen implies a stance on the word debate. Nick’s word isn’t inherently bad or mean—it isn’t even a euphemism for an inappropriate word—but to many adults, frindle implies contempt for authority, and Nick must face the inevitability that others might misconstrue his intentions. Conversely, students may perceive frindle as empowering, demonstrating the impact their imagination and perseverance can have on the world. Whether through language’s adaptability or the nuances of vocabulary, the novel asserts that language has power, and those who wield it well help shape the way people understand the world.
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By Andrew Clements
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