book / 1983
The Witches
A boy and his grandmother uncover a witches' plot against children, then fight it even after transformation changes his future.
Verified facts
- Author
- Roald Dahl
- Published
- 1983
- Language
- English
PlotGeeks explainer signals
Why read this explainer
The boy's transformation changes what defeating the witches can restore. His relationship with his grandmother remains important after the danger passes.
PlotGeeks note
The boy retains his mind and capacity to act as a mouse. His grandmother's love allows the changed life to remain imaginable.
Connected knowledge
Connected in PlotGeeks
Related explainers and browse pages for The Witches.
- Part of The Witches on screen
Browse the screen versions grouped with The Witches.
- Compare with The Witches (1990 film)
Compare what changes between the 1983 book and the 1990 film.
- Explore Family
Family can offer shelter, impose a role, or become the system a character must escape.
Timeline
Major events
- Grandmother's warnings
After losing his parents, the boy learns from his grandmother how witches hide among ordinary people.
- The hotel convention
The boy overhears the witches' scheme and becomes a mouse after the Grand High Witch discovers him.
- Potion in the soup
Working with his grandmother, the boy steals the formula and pours it into the witches' dinner.
- A permanent change
The boy remains a mouse and plans to attack the next Grand High Witch with his grandmother.
Story in 60 Seconds
The short version
An orphaned boy lives with his Norwegian grandmother, who warns him that witches disguise themselves as ordinary women. At an English hotel, he overhears the Grand High Witch proposing to turn children into mice through poisoned sweets. Bruno Jenkins becomes a demonstration victim, and the narrator is transformed when the witches discover him. Still able to think and speak, he steals their potion and puts it in their dinner. The witches become mice and are killed by the hotel staff. The boy remains a mouse and plans further attacks on witches with his grandmother.
Spoiler sectionEnding ExplainedShow ending detailsHide ending details
The boy never regains his human body. His grandmother explains that his shortened life as a mouse may roughly match the years she has left, and he welcomes the possibility of remaining with her throughout it. They plan to attack the next Grand High Witch in Norway. Victory leaves a permanent change and another undertaking ahead of them.
Original context
Why it matters
A victory with lasting consequences
The witches are defeated through the formula they intended for children. The boy's body remains changed, separating the defeat of an enemy from recovery of everything lost.
Key turning points
Acting after transformation
Becoming a mouse gives the boy access to places a human child could not enter. He uses that small body to steal the potion and reach the kitchen.
Character links
Who connects to whom
Character motivations
Protecting other children
The boy and his grandmother continue because other witches still threaten children. Their plans grow from the trust that helped them survive the hotel together.
Adaptation
Book and film connection
Explore the story