Reading Charlotte’s Web as a child can only leave you with the impression that a friendship between a pig and a spider is not only possible, but also incredibly touching and meant to break time boundaries. You seek to find a close friend like Wilbur (the pig) or Charlotte (the spider). If you are creative enough, you may even pay more attention to the next animal you come across, for they may have something to share. But as time passes by and you happen to return to E. B. White’s novel, your developed spidey sense (excuse the pun) may alert you there is more to the story itself – and it is a good tingle coming up your spine.
I re-encountered the main characters with certain ideas in my mind, which I’ll share with you from the very beginning, so as to follow the same path as I did. Recently, I have come across an unusual representation of the spider, to be found in Jonathan Swift’s Battle of the Books, a satire about the quarrel between Ancients and Moderns, occurring in the Age of Enlightenment. At one point, Swift tries to represent the two different approaches to life, characteristic to ancient and modern writers. While the Ancients are compared to bees – which collect resources and ideas from nature –, the rising authors of the 17th-18th century function more like spiders, “furnished with a native stock within themselves”, with “materials extracted altogether out of their own person”. It was believed that Moderns could bring novelties to the table, but individuals like Swift, for instance, would boldly point out that the Ancients had already prepared the ground for future generations. As a result, Moderns did nothing more than borrow the Ancients’ universal topics and slightly alter them, only creating the illusion that they innovated. In Swift’s curious allegory, spiders, as much as they take pride in building up “large castles” out of their marrow, are depicted as carrying “a good plentiful store of dirt and poison”, false works lacking actual substance. One such poisonous nature has not made me forget that E. B. White’s Charlotte is an exceptional character. The younger me was clearly more interested in Wilbur, who had survived death multiple times, due to his little friend crafting some sort of magic on the web. This time, however, it was more important to detect whether Charlotte was introduced with preconceptions and was required to fight more than Wilbur. The title never makes mention of the pig, after all, does it?
At a closer glance, all animals featured in the novel are built with prejudices at first. Wilbur is born as the runt, the pig which normally would not be allowed the chance to live. It just so happens that Fern Arable, the farmer’s young daughter, spots the injustice of killing an animal solely based on its small size. She convinces her father to look after the pig herself, “the miserable thing (…) no bigger than a white rat” (White, 4). This image accompanies Wilbur even after he grows up a bit, is purchased by Fern’s uncle and brought at his farm. The animals do not hesitate in pointing out that the little pig means “less than nothing” (27), a remark which ignites bewilderment in Wilbur:
“ ‘What do you mean, less than nothing?’ replied Wilbur. ‘I don’t think there is any such thing as less than nothing. Nothing is absolutely the limit of nothingness. It’s the lowest you can go. It’s the end of the line. How can something be less than nothing? If there were something that was less than nothing, then nothing would not be nothing, it would be something – even though it’s just a very little bit of something. But if nothing is nothing, then nothing has nothing that is less than it is.’ ” (27)
The apparently rambling reply gets to highlight Wilbur’s potential to have a bright mind, in fact. Not only that, he also distinguishes himself from the farm’s own rat, Templeton, who confesses he’s more of “a glutton but not a merrymaker” (27). Further on, it takes Charlotte to pop in and convince as many people (and animals) as possible that Wilbur deserves to survive more than just one Christmas. She is, indeed, seen as a bloodthirsty creature feeding off bugs, but she transfers a new meaning upon her life. For the readers’ consideration, anything tangled up in Charlotte’s web is a source of ideas which prove to be useful when the spider hangs head-down and does her thinking, for “all the blood is in her head” (60). She even makes use of Templeton, as well, by asking him to “bring a word” from his daily forage. The words found in scraps of newspaper give Charlotte the opportunity to write them on her web so as to describe Wilbur: “Some Pig”, “Terrific”, “Radiant”, “Humble”. It is intriguing to notice how the spider is perfectly aware of people’s amusing gullibility. The novel, at a deeper surface, cleverly mocks such credulous individuals and, simultaneously, stresses the manipulative power of words. We get to observe Fern’s family praising Wilbur all of a sudden, after having Charlotte’s words easily imprinted on their minds – “ ‘I’ve thought all along that that pig of ours was an extra good one. (…) You notice how solid he is around the shoulders?’ ” (77) – and forgetting how they initially treated the “weakling” (3). Consequently, alongside gullibility, humans’ hypocrisy is resurfaced.
There is a strong inclination towards depicting this novel as a story about friendship – also including issues of life and death. Undoubtedly, this description suits the book and yet, the same amount of emphasis needs to be placed upon E. B. White’s indirect homage to writers. His own brief commentary about the spider says it all: “It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.” (170) A part of me finds these words perfect to hear upon leaving Charlotte and Wilbur’s universe. But the other part also thinks this statement is fit in the beginning of the story. Maybe it already is there, if one chooses to re-read the book from this new perspective.
Swift’s satire may have come in handy prior to Charlotte’s Web. On the one hand, Charlotte releases the poisonous sack of words onto people – “ ‘He’s quite a pig. (…) He’s some pig.’ ” (77) But on the other hand, her words have a positive impact on Wilbur himself, who adopts the attitudes suggested by the words on the web. It is almost the journey of a boy who gets told by his mother that he is terrific and full of life, but meanwhile learns the significance of modesty. Wilbur forms connections with those around him and gets in touch with his soul at the same time. We have a process similar to the one in Walt Whitman’s poem entitled A Noiseless Patient Spider. Charlotte’s web is not a mere book, it stands for life itself, containing holes bound to be filled (“Mark’d how to explore the vacant vast surrounding, / It launch’d forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself…”), destinies unintentionally intertwined – “Wilbur’s left-over food is your chief source of supply, Templeton. You know that. Wilbur’s food is your food; therefore Wilbur’s destiny and your destiny are closely linked.” (85) – and tireless searches for a purposeful life (“And you O my soul where you stand, / Surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space, / Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them, / Till the bridge you will need be form’d…”). Of course, one must take into account that, although some lives are shorter than others, there is still no need to rush. Charlotte herself declares that people “keep trotting back and forth across the bridge thinking there is something better on the other side” (58) – a possible connection to Whitman’s own bridge mentioned above. It may be better for them to wait quietly sometimes and have something good coming along. A touch of inspiration. Followed by a strong sense of control, for that one good thing belongs to you now and you can shape it however you wish so. This sort of advice comes from Charlotte, a self-claimed “sedentary spider” (58) – with “desk-bound” as a thought-provoking synonym.
My own preconceptions about spiders, heavily influenced by Swift’s satire as well, have not stripped away the child-like beauty of E. B. White’s novel. Words may stick around like poison or completely shift our trajectory in a positive manner. Either way, ironically in the end, Charlotte does come off like a Modern writer, with brilliant insight into the human nature and the numerous ways in which it can be continuously moulded. She is also that type of Modern author who can take on any shape or form. Sometimes she is a mere spider, other times she shows to be that loyal friend we are all looking for. The older you are as a reader, the more likely you are to perceive her even as a motherly figure, distant from most people, but the closest to you, willing to encourage you, give you a boost powerful enough to prepare you for the cycle of life and its challenges. Once again, either way, the next spiderweb you will stumble upon will make you think again.
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