The Robin Character Analysis in The Secret Garden

A young male robin that was born in a tree in the secret garden, but as a fledgling was unable to make it back to the nest. At that time, he befriended Ben Weatherstaff, and when Mary meets the robin, he seems almost tame. He sings for Ben Weatherstaff, Mary, and Dickon, and once, stands on the end of Ben Weatherstaff's gardening tool. A few days later, the robin shows Mary where the key and the door to the secret garden are, and he accompanies the children inside. Ben Weatherstaff and the children watch the robin transform from a young, boisterous, and flamboyant creature looking for a mate to a mature, protective, and harried father. He and his mate build a nest in the corner of the garden, and they allow the children to get relatively close. When the robin narrates a chapter, he notes that Dickon speaks robin language and remarks on how long it takes for human children to grow up as he watches Colin walk laps around the garden.

The Robin Quotes in The Secret Garden

The The Secret Garden quotes below are all either spoken by The Robin or refer to The Robin . 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:

"A bird with a red breast was sitting on one of them and he sang."

To her surprise the surly old weather-beaten face actually changed its expression. A slow smile spread over it and the gardener looked quite different. It made her think that it was curious how much nicer a person looked when he smiled. She had not thought of it before.

Related Characters: Mary Lennox (speaker), Ben Weatherstaff , The Robin

Page Number and Citation: 44

Explanation and Analysis:

As Mary explores the grounds of Misselthwaite Manor on her first day, she meets Ben Weatherstaff and tells the curmudgeonly old gardener about seeing a singing robin. Hearing Mary talk about the robin brightens Ben's face, and for the first time, Mary realizes that smiles make people look nice. The fact that Mary is having this revelation outside in the garden and in relation to the robin illustrates two of the novel's main points. First, it reinforces that friendship, as she'll go on to form with the robin and with Ben, is one of the best ways for children learn 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 nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus volupt

She walked away, slowly thinking. She had begun to like the garden just as she had begun to like the robin and Dickon and Martha's mother. She was beginning to like Martha, too. This seemed a good many people to like—when you were not used to liking.

Related Characters: Mary Lennox (speaker), Dickon, Susan Sowerby / Mother, The Robin , Martha, Ben Weatherstaff

Page Number and Citation: 78

Explanation and Analysis:

After a brief conversation with Ben Weatherstaff about the secret garden, Mary takes stock of all the people she's starting to like. The novel attributes Mary's transformation to learning to like people to the time she spends in nature, even at this point when she hasn't yet discovered the secret garden. This also shows how her time in nature gradually begins to give her happy things to think about, especially other people, which in turn makes Mary happier and healthier. Taken together, this all shows that Mary's engagement with the garden and the growing number of good thoughts that she's Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperia

The Robin Character Timeline in The Secret Garden

The timeline below shows where the character The Robin appears in The Secret Garden. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...it's enclosing another garden, possibly with trees in it. As Mary studies the trees, a robin starts singing. It makes her feel happy, and she hopes she'll see it again. She... (full context)

...seems surly when she mentions a garden with no door and tells him about the robin. However, at the mention of the robin, Ben starts to smile, and Mary thinks it... (full context)

Looking at the robin, Mary says that she's lonely. This has never occurred to her before, and the narrator... (full context)

The robin flies over the wall again, and Mary cries out. Ben Weatherstaff explains that he lives... (full context)

As Mary studies the bushy ivy, she hears the robin singing. She greets the robin, and in reply, the robin chirps and hops around. Laughing,... (full context)

The robin comes to visit, and when he cocks his head at Mary, Mary asks Ben Weatherstaff... (full context)

As Mary walks along the wall covered in ivy, she hears the robin in a bare flowerbed. He clearly followed her, and she happily "converses" with him. The... (full context)

...her cheeks. Mary is thrilled. Ben encourages her to keep skipping and notes that the robin will certainly follow her again today. Mary skips off to her favorite path along the... (full context)

...heard about in her Ayah's stories. A gust of wind blows the ivy where the robin is sitting, and as it moves, Mary catches the vines, having seen a doorknob underneath... (full context)

...brown and still. Mary remarks at how still everything is and notices that even the robin, sitting in a tree, is silent. She quietly walks around the garden following the robin... (full context)

...and clears some of the grass from around them. She grows warmer and happier. The robin is thrilled that someone is caring for his garden. (full context)

...doesn't object to Mary as much anymore, though he does grumble that she's like the robin in that she approaches silently and without warning. One morning, when Mary has been at... (full context)

Ben Weatherstaff and Mary greet the robin, who preens and sings for Ben. Ben teases the robin for acting so flirtatious, but... (full context)

...she forgets to feel shy. They look at the seed packets until Dickon hears the robin singing. He happily says that the robin is saying he's friends with Mary and will... (full context)

...if he likes her, attempting a Yorkshire accent. He says that both he and the robin do. A while later, the clock strikes for dinner. Dickon pulls out bread and bacon,... (full context)

...she kisses them. They run all around the garden admiring the growing things. Soon, the robin flies into the garden with something in his beak. Dickon quiets Mary and tells her... (full context)

To distract themselves from looking at the robin, Mary tells Dickon about Colin. Dickon looks surprised and then relieved that he doesn't have... (full context)

Dickon agrees that he could push Colin's wheelchair and then points to the robin. He whistles and the robin turns towards him. Dickon reassures the robin, and it makes... (full context)

...and she and Dickon spend the afternoon working. Soot and Captain busy themselves, and the robin continues to build his nest. They rest after a while and Dickon comments that Mary... (full context)

...ivy wall, they all start to whisper. Mary points out landmarks along the way—where the robin showed her the key and where Ben Weatherstaff works—and then, she steps into the bed,... (full context)

...to look at, and Dickon pushes the wheelchair around. Dickon explains that they'll see the robin soon, when the eggs have hatched. They giggle and try to muffle the sound. (full context)

...covered with roses. Colin notices a broken branch, but Dickon turns his attention to the robin, who has something in his beak for his mate. Later, Mary tells Dickon privately that... (full context)

...at them over the wall. He threatens to hit Mary, but Mary insists that the robin showed her into the garden. This offends Ben even more. Colin asks Dickon to wheel... (full context)

The secret garden blooms, and soon the robin's mate lays eggs. Everyone in the garden seems to know how precious they are, though... (full context)

The robin watches Colin eventually start to move like Dickon and Mary, which is comforting, but all... (full context)

...was filled with bad thoughts, she was ugly and yellow. As she learned about the robin and Dickon, she got better. Colin experienced the same thing; he was never going to... (full context)

The Robin Character Analysis

The Robin Quotes in The Secret Garden

Chapter 4 Quotes

Chapter 7 Quotes

The Robin Character Timeline in The Secret Garden