Matilda Summary: Plot, Characters and Ending
Matilda follows Matilda Wormwood, a girl who reads Dickens at four but whose parents think she is a nuisance. At school she faces the terrifying headmistress Miss Trunchbull and finds a friend in her gentle teacher Miss Honey. Then she discovers she can move things with her eyes.
It was Roald Dahl's last long novel for children.
| Character | Who they are |
|---|---|
| Matilda Wormwood | Brilliant five-year-old girl |
| Mr. and Mrs. Wormwood | Her selfish, neglectful parents |
| Miss Honey | Kind, shy teacher |
| Miss Trunchbull | Tyrannical headmistress |
| Lavender | Matilda's bold friend |
| Bruce Bogtrotter | Boy forced to eat a giant cake |
| Mrs. Phelps | Friendly librarian |
What is Matilda's home life like?
Matilda teaches herself to read and works her way through the whole children's section of the library, then the classics, with help from the librarian Mrs. Phelps. Her father, a dishonest used-car dealer, and her bingo-loving mother care only about television. When her father is cruel, Matilda gets even with pranks: glue in his hat, a parrot in the chimney pretending to be a burglar, and blonde peroxide in his hair tonic.
↑ Back to the topWhat is school like?
At Crunchem Hall, Miss Honey is amazed by Matilda's mind and tries to move her up a class, but Miss Trunchbull, a former hammer-throwing champion, refuses. Trunchbull swings children by their pigtails, locks them in a spiked cupboard called the Chokey and makes Bruce Bogtrotter eat an entire chocolate cake in front of the school. He finishes it, and the students cheer.
↑ Back to the topHow does Matilda discover her power?
When Trunchbull falsely accuses Matilda of putting a newt in her water, Matilda grows so angry that her eyes burn and she tips the glass over by willpower. She tells Miss Honey, who shares her own story: Miss Trunchbull is her aunt, who raised her cruelly after her father's mysterious death, took his house and still keeps her poor.
↑ Back to the topHow does Matilda end?
Matilda practices until she can lift a stick of chalk with her mind. In class, she makes the chalk write on the blackboard as if it were the ghost of Miss Honey's father, Magnus, demanding that Trunchbull return the house and leave. Trunchbull faints and disappears for good. Miss Honey gets her house and money back and becomes headmistress, and Matilda, moved to a class that challenges her, loses her powers. When the Wormwoods suddenly flee to Spain to escape the police, Matilda asks to stay with Miss Honey, and her parents agree without a second thought.
↑ Back to the topMore about Matilda
This summary reveals the whole plot, including the ending.