Matilda: 9 Summary & Analysis

First, Miss Honey goes around to the upper-level teachers to borrow textbooks on geometry, literature, and French. Then she calls Matilda over and says that rather than sit and be bored, she should study from the textbooks during each lesson. Matilda very politely thanks Miss Honey for the books and the help. Miss Honey knows Mr. Wormwood is wrong about his daughter—and she’s shocked that Matilda doesn’t seem aware of how brilliant she is. When class reconvenes, Matilda happily studies the geometry textbook.

As she teaches the other students, Miss Honey decides that she must speak with Matilda’s parents. Mr. Wormwood has such a successful business that he must be intelligent, and it’s unusual for parents to underestimate their children. It shouldn’t be hard to convince the Wormwoods that Matilda is brilliant. Perhaps she can even get them to agree to let her give Matilda private lessons. She decides to call on the Wormwoods later in the evening, after Matilda is in bed.

So after nine that evening, Miss Honey walks to Matilda’s house and rings the doorbell. She can hear the TV inside. A small, “ratty” man—Mr. Wormwood—answers the door, and when Miss Honey introduces herself as Matilda’s teacher, says he’s not surprised she’s already in trouble. He says it’s Miss Honey’s responsibility to deal with her. Miss Honey insists she has good news about Matilda and asks to come in, but Mr. Wormwood says it’s an inconvenient time—they’re in the middle of their favorite TV show. Angrily, Miss Honey suggests the Wormwoods shouldn’t be parents if they think TV is more important than Matilda’s future. He angrily lets her in.

Mr. Wormwood leads Miss Honey to the living room, where Mrs. Wormwood continues to stare at the TV. When Mr. Wormwood turns down the volume, Mrs. Wormwood shrieks—they’re just getting to the good part. Miss Honey introduces herself and sits down. She notes that Matilda came to school today able to read. She asks if Mr. or Mrs. Wormwood taught Matilda to read; perhaps, as they insist, Matilda is lying about who taught her to read. Mr. Wormwood notes that he reads Autocar and Motor every week, but his family doesn’t believe “sitting on your fanny and reading story-books” is a good use of time.

Miss Honey says that, regardless, Matilda is brilliant, and her parents should know this. Mrs. Wormwood gripes that Matilda is always reading, but Miss Honey asks if they’re really not curious about a five-year-old who can read Dickens and Hemingway. Mrs. Wormwood says that girls should concentrate on their appearances so they can marry, not get an education. They should do what she did—she choose looks, while Miss Honey obviously chose books. Miss Honey is shocked, especially when Mrs. Wormwood says that she’s better off than Miss Honey is.

Trying to hold her temper, Miss Honey says that Matilda also seems to be a math genius. Mr. Wormwood doesn’t see the point when calculators exist, and Mrs. Wormwood insists it doesn’t do a girl any good to be “brainy.” Gesturing to the TV screen, where a busty woman is embracing a male actor, she points out that the woman didn’t get the man by multiplying. The TV couple is going to get married, and the woman will have maids. Miss Honey makes one more attempt to convince the Wormwoods that Matilda needs private tutoring and could attend university in a few years. At this, Mr. Wormwood shouts that all people learn at university are “bad habits.” Miss Honey points out that doctors and lawyers are all university graduates, but she can see she’s not going to get anywhere. She leaves.