The Perks of Being a Wallflower
by Stephen Chbosky
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Charlie’s Grandfather Character Analysis

The father of Charlie’s mom and Aunt Helen, Charlie’s grandfather worked in a mill as a laborer and struggled to make ends meet. When Charlie’s mom and aunt earn Cs on their report cards, Charlie’s grandfather beats them as his way of motivating them to do better. Deeply racist and homophobic, Charlie’s grandfather also fears open emotions and cannot communicate care to his children except through violence. He regularly offends his family members, and only shows warmth once in the novel towards Charlie’s sister after she graduates from high school among the top of her class. Charlie’s grandfather is representative of the men who carry the burden of financially supporting their families but who lack the emotional literacy to develop relationships with them.

Charlie’s Grandfather Quotes in The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The The Perks of Being a Wallflower quotes below are all either spoken by Charlie’s Grandfather or refer to Charlie’s Grandfather. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Trauma, Abuse, and Mental Health Theme Icon
).

Part 2  Quotes

When we were all getting ready to leave, I walked up to my grandfather and gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. He wiped my lip print off with his palm and gave me a look. He doesn’t like the boys in the family to touch him. But I’m very glad that I did it anyway in case he dies. I never got to do that with my Aunt Helen.

Related Characters: Charlie (speaker), Aunt Helen, Charlie’s Grandfather
Page Number and Citation: 60
Explanation and Analysis:
This moment occurs on Thanksgiving after Charlie’s family watches a recording of his brother play football. While everyone else is smiling, Charlie notices his grandfather crying, clearly overwhelmed with pride at his grandson’s success. Charlie realizes that, for all his flaws, his grandfather is a complicated person whom he loves. Wanting to communicate his affection for his grandfather, Charlie hugs and kisses him, as family members often do, but Charlie’s attempt to demonstrate care is poorly received. Because his grandfather subscribes to a traditional, homophobic conception of masculinity, tenderness between male family members makes him uncomfortable, and he reacts like Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesci

Epilogue Quotes

It's like if I blamed my aunt Helen, I would have to blame her dad for hitting her and the friend of the family that fooled around with her when she was little. And the person that fooled around with him. And God for not stopping all this and things that are much worse. And I did do that for a while, but then I just couldn't anymore. Because it wasn't going anywhere. Because it wasn't the point.

Related Characters: Charlie (speaker), Charlie’s Grandfather, Aunt Helen
Page Number and Citation: 211
Explanation and Analysis:
After spending two months in a mental health hospital with intensive counseling, Charlie comes to terms with the knowledge that Aunt Helen molested him as a child. With the help of therapy and talking with his family, Charlie has decided to release any anger and resentment he feels. Through Charlie’s voice, Chbosky explains that cycles of abuse often extend too far back into history to trace, such that losing oneself in blame and anger does not provide relief or a productive strategy for moving forward. Charlie admits that he focused on blame for a while, but has now moved on, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores
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Charlie’s Grandfather Character Timeline in The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The timeline below shows where the character Charlie’s Grandfather appears in The Perks of Being a Wallflower. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Part 2 
Trauma, Abuse, and Mental Health Theme Icon
Relationships and Intimacy Theme Icon
Masculinity and Violence Theme Icon
Charlie thinks about spending holidays with his mom’s family. His grandfather tends to offend most of the family and make racist comments, and Charlie’s brother is... (full context)
Trauma, Abuse, and Mental Health Theme Icon
Relationships and Intimacy Theme Icon
Masculinity and Violence Theme Icon
Adolescence and Transformation Theme Icon
...writes that she was molested as a child and when she told her father, Charlie’s grandfather, he didn’t believe her, so the abuse continued. Aunt Helen had drinking and drug problems... (full context)
Part 4
Relationships and Intimacy Theme Icon
Masculinity and Violence Theme Icon
The next morning, Charlie’s family has a brunch to celebrate his sister’s graduation. Charlie’s grandfather immediately begins making racist comments as soon as they arrive at the school, and Charlie’s... (full context)