Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The Witches. Matilda. James and the Giant Peach. Turns out Roald Dahl was just universally distrusting of all adults. Rightfully so.
Except for the dad in Danny Champion of the World, who was the coolest dad ever.
If you ever read the books, it was also clear that he really, really hated children, too.
I’ve read all of the books I listed. And most of his short stories as well. I don’t think he hated anyone, he just had a very dark perspective in general. The whole world is grotesque, but the antagonists are adults in a majority of his novels. It’s very much in the tradition of Lewis Carrol; children serve to contrast the absurd and cruel aspects of daily life. Industrialization, authoritarianism, violence, poverty; it’s all deconstructed through a child’s lens.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The Witches. Matilda. James and the Giant Peach. Turns out Roald Dahl was just universally distrusting of all adults. Rightfully so.
Except for the dad in Danny Champion of the World, who was the coolest dad ever.
If you ever read the books, it was also clear that he really, really hated children, too.
I’ve read all of the books I listed. And most of his short stories as well. I don’t think he hated anyone, he just had a very dark perspective in general. The whole world is grotesque, but the antagonists are adults in a majority of his novels. It’s very much in the tradition of Lewis Carrol; children serve to contrast the absurd and cruel aspects of daily life. Industrialization, authoritarianism, violence, poverty; it’s all deconstructed through a child’s lens.