James and the Giant Peach Setting & Symbolism

James and the Giant Peach Objects/Places

Then Angry Rhinoceros

The Angry Rhinoceros escapes from the London zoo in the opening chapter of the novel and eats up James' parents while they are out sightseeing. Even though the troubles for James' parents end relatively soon, it was, after all, a very hungry rhinoceros, the death of his parents leads to a world of trouble for James who is then sent to live with his two nasty aunts.

The Magic Beans

The magic beans are made of crocodile tongues boiled with the skull of a dead witch and the eyeball of a lizard for twenty days. To that mixture is added the finger of a young monkey, the gizzard of a pig, the beak of a parrot, the juice of a porcupine, and three spoonfuls of sugar. The end result is tiny, luminous beans, no larger than grains of rice, that hold magic powers. James is given the magic beans by an old...
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