Ivan has lived his life alone in a shopping mall, and he hasn’t seen another gorilla in the 27 years since he arrived there. Having spent so many years living with humans and other animals rather than gorillas, and being billed as a frightening roadside attraction for tourists, Ivan isn’t sure of who or what he is—it’s not always entirely clear to him whether he’s supposed to be a person or a gorilla, or whether he’s supposed to be peaceful or frightening. However, Ivan finds a purpose and begins to feel more like a gorilla when the baby elephant Ruby arrives, and Ivan throws himself into getting her transferred to a zoo. Through Ivan’s chosen family of various animals and humans at the mall, and later, as he integrates into a gorilla family at the zoo, the novel positions family as something that shows people (and animals) who and what they are.
Throughout the novel, Ivan explains that he’s supposed to be a silverback gorilla—but living in captivity has made him unable to embody silverback traits. Silverbacks, Ivan explains, are the mature male gorillas within wild gorilla families, identifiable by the silver patch of fur over their backs. A silverback’s job is to be a teacher and a protector of his family, helping to raise any babies and defending his family members from any threats. Ivan also notes that gorillas in general are calm and peaceful creatures—but anger, he explains, is a tool that silverbacks use only in special circumstances to defend their families. And while Ivan notes that he’s calm and peaceful, he also doesn’t have anyone to defend or teach. So, although Ivan may look the part of a silverback with his silver patch of fur, he feels as though he isn’t able to embody what it actually means to be a silverback. Further, Ivan also recognizes that Mack, the mall’s owner, is trying to make Ivan seem like he’s not peaceful. The billboard advertising Ivan as a tourist attraction features a painting of Ivan, and in that image, Ivan looks frightening and violent—a far cry from who Ivan really is. Ivan also notes that when people stop by his domain to look at him, many beat their chests in an imitation of what they think gorillas are actually like (powerful and dangerous). Few humans see Ivan for who he actually is—and Ivan also believes that because he has no one to protect, he’s not even who he’s supposed to be.
However, accepting his responsibility as a parental figure to Ruby changes everything. Ivan is distraught when Mack purchases the baby elephant Ruby and when, not long after, Stella (another elephant at the mall) dies of neglect. Stella’s death leaves Ruby all on her own—and on her deathbed, Stella asks Ivan to help Ruby lead a better life than she did. At first, Ivan doesn’t think he has any way to help Ruby. He doesn’t see himself as a real silverback; therefore, he believes that he’s powerless to do anything to help Ruby and keep his promise to Stella. But a change comes over Ivan when he sees Mack threaten Ruby with a claw-stick and he realizes that if he does nothing to try to help her, Ruby is going to become like Ivan one day. This motivates Ivan to paint a mural intended to convince people to move Ruby to a zoo—and he’s ultimately successful. With this, the novel suggests that Ivan is able to step into the role of a silverback once he realizes that he has someone to protect.
Finally, the novel suggests that it’s not always necessary to feel totally comfortable with one’s identity—forming one’s identity, it suggests, is a process that’s never fully over. This becomes clear to Ivan when he’s finally transferred to the zoo and meets other gorillas for the first time. Maya, a gorilla handler at the zoo, attempts to integrate Ivan into a gorilla family that doesn’t have a silverback—a situation that, on the surface, seems like it will give Ivan every opportunity to become the silverback he wants to be. However, Ivan realizes quickly that being a gorilla, and particularly a silverback, isn’t as easy as looking the part—his behavior needs to match his outward appearance. At first, Ivan struggles with this. He finds the other gorillas intimidating and struggles to present himself as a powerful leader, let alone an actual gorilla. But soon, he realizes that he doesn’t have to actually feel like a powerful silverback in order to make the other gorillas treat him like one—he may feel like an imposter on the inside, but outwardly, he can embody the qualities of a silverback. With this, once again, the novel shows that family—in this case, Ivan’s new gorilla family—can be a major driving force in helping beings become who they want to be. It doesn’t necessarily matter what a family looks like; families of all shapes and sizes are important support systems as people (and animals) form their identities and become who they truly are.
Related Themes from Other Texts
Family, Friendship, and Identity ThemeTracker
Family, Friendship, and Identity Quotes in The One and Only Ivan
People call me the Freeway Gorilla. The Ape at Exit 8. The One and Only Ivan, Mighty Silverback.
The names are mine, but they’re not me. I am Ivan, just Ivan, only Ivan.
The freeway billboard has a drawing of Mack in his clown clothes and Stella on her hind legs and an angry animal with fierce eyes and unkempt hair.
That animal is supposed to be me, but the artist made a mistake. I am never angry.
Anger is precious. A silverback uses anger to maintain order and warn his troop of danger. When my father beat his chest, it was to say, Beware, listen, I am in charge. I am angry to protect you, because that is what I was born to do.
Here in my domain, there is no one to protect.
My life is flashing lights and pointing fingers and uninvited visitors. Inches away, humans flatten their little hands against the wall of glass that separates us.
The glass says you are this and we are that and that is how it will always be.
My visitors are often surprised when they see the TV Mack put in my domain. They seem to find it odd, the sight of a gorilla staring at tiny humans in a box.
Sometimes I wonder, though: Isn’t the way they stare at me, sitting in my tiny box, just as strange?
“You could try remembering a good day,” Stella suggests. “That’s what I do when I can’t sleep.”
Stella remembers every moment since she was born: every scent, every sunset, every slight, every victory.
“You know I can’t remember much,” I say.
“There’s a difference,” Stella says gently, “between ‘can’t remember’ and ‘won’t remember.’”
“That’s true,” I admit. Not remembering can be difficult, but I’ve had a lot of time to work on it.
“Memories are precious,” Stella adds. “They help tell us who we are.”
“Why do you love [drawing]?” Ruby asks.
I pause. I’ve never talked to anyone about this before. “When I’m drawing a picture, I feel…quiet inside.”
Ruby frowns. “Quiet is boring.”
“Not always.”
But many days I forget what I am supposed to be. Am I a human? Am I a gorilla?
Humans have so many words, more than they truly need.
Still, they have no name for what I am.
“Do you think,” she asks, “that I’ll die in this domain someday, like Aunt Stella?”
Once again I consider lying, but when I look at Ruby, the half-formed words die in my throat. “Not if I can help it,” I say instead.
I feel something tighten in my chest, something dark and hot. “And it’s not a domain,” I add.
I pause, and then I say it. “It’s a cage.”
I’m ready to show Julia what I’ve made.
It has to be Julia. She’s an artist. Surely she’ll look, truly look, at my painting. She won’t notice the smudges and tears. She won’t care if the pieces don’t quite fit together. She’ll see past all of that.
Surely Julia will see what I’ve imagined.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
I bounce off the walls. I screech and bellow. I beat and beat and beat my chest.
Bob hides under Not-Tag, his paws over his ears.
I’m angry, at last.
I have someone to protect.
“Do you think the other gorillas will like you?” Ruby asks.
“I’m a silverback, Ruby. A leader.” I pull back my shoulders and hold my head high. “They don’t have to like me. They have to respect me.”
Even as I tell her this, I wonder if I can ever command their respect.
I haven’t had much practice being a real gorilla, much less a silverback.
I move toward the young upstart, and he retreats.
Almost as if he believes I’m the silverback I’m pretending to be.
They stand side by side, just the way Stella and Ruby used to. Their trunks entwine. I see something new in Ruby’s eyes, and I know what it is.
It’s joy.
I watch the whole thing, and then Maya plays it again for me, and again. At last she turns off the TV and carries it out of the cage.
I put my hand to the glass. Maya looks over.
Thank you, I try to say with my eyes. Thank you.
