Pollyanna Grows Up · Chapter
XXIV: Jimmy Wakes Up explained
Jimmy Pendleton realizes he is in love with Pollyanna, but fears that Jamie Kent also loves her.
What happens
Jimmy Pendleton realizes he is in love with Pollyanna, but fears that Jamie Kent also loves her. He struggles with the decision to give Jamie a fair chance, despite his own feelings. Pollyanna, meanwhile, feels constrained and guilty after the bull incident, and tries to be extra kind to Jamie, which Jimmy misinterprets as mutual affection. Sadie Dean's comment that Pollyanna and Jamie 'worship each other' deepens Jimmy's despair, leading him to withdraw and seek comfort in Mrs. Carew's company.
Themes in this chapter
Love and Marriage
Jimmy's realization of his love for Pollyanna and his internal struggle over whether to compete with Jamie highlight the complexities of romantic love and self-sacrifice.
Personal Growth and Maturity
Jimmy transitions from a carefree youth to an anxious young man, grappling with jealousy and the decision to put Pollyanna's happiness above his own.
Characters to notice
- Jimmy Pendleton
Realizes he is in love with Pollyanna and agonizes over whether to compete with Jamie for her affections, ultimately deciding to watch and wait.
- Pollyanna Whittier
Feels guilty and constrained after the bull incident, and tries to be especially kind to Jamie, though his presence has become painful to her.
- Jamie Kent
Shows bitterness beneath his gaiety after the bull incident, and increasingly seeks Pollyanna's companionship, believing she understands his disability.
- Sadie Dean
Tells Jimmy that Pollyanna and Jamie 'worship each other,' deepening Jimmy's despair.
- Mrs. Carew
Provides comfort and sympathy to Jimmy, and shows knowledge about bridges, becoming his main solace.
- John Pendleton
Interrupts Jimmy and Mrs. Carew at a crucial moment when Jimmy was about to tell her about The Packet.
Key passages
“From a carefree youth whose visions were of wonderful spans across hitherto unbridgeable chasms, he has come to be an anxious-eyed young man whose visions were of a feared rival bearing away the girl he loved.”
Jimmy has changed from a lighthearted dreamer focused on building bridges to a worried man obsessed with the fear that Jamie will win Pollyanna.
Illustrates Jimmy's shift in priorities from engineering ambitions to romantic anxiety.
“It was all very fine and heroic, and Jimmy felt so exalted he was atingle with something that was almost happiness when he finally dropped off to sleep that night. But martyrdom in theory and practice differs woefully, as would-be martyrs have found out from time immemorial.”
Jimmy felt noble deciding to give Jamie a chance, but soon found that actually doing so was much harder than he imagined.
Highlights the gap between Jimmy's heroic intentions and the painful reality of carrying them out.
“She worships him! I mean—they worship each other.”
Sadie Dean tells Jimmy that Pollyanna and Jamie are deeply in love with each other.
This remark solidifies Jimmy's belief that he has lost Pollyanna to Jamie.