| The Whipping Boy | |
|---|---|
 First edition cover of The Whipping Boy |
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| Author | Sid Fleischman |
| Illustrator | Peter Sis |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Children's novel |
| Publisher | Greenwillow Books |
| Publication date | April 1986 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 89 pp |
| ISBN | 0-688-06216-4 |
| OCLC Number | 12421157 |
| LC Classification | PZ7.F5992 Wh 1986 |
The Whipping Boy is a Newbery medal-winning children's book by Sid Fleischman, published in 1987.
Contents |
Plot introduction
The prince runs away from the castle with his whipping boy. Throughout their adventures they become friends.
Explanation of the novel's title
The title refers to the character who must receive the prince's beatings when he misbehaves. It is a crime worse than murder to hit the heir to the throne, so when the princes' behavior warrants corporal punishment, another boy must be beaten in his stead.
Plot summary
Prince Horace is a spoiled brat. He desperately seeks the attentions of his father, and to this aim, he misbehaves frequently. As the prince, no one may raise a hand against him; therefore, his family has provided for him a whipping boy.
Jemmy, an orphan who used to catch rats in the sewer (because they are the best fighting rats) is the whipping boy. He is brave and proud. He is beaten several times a day, but he refuses to cry out and bellow. He longs for the freedom he lived in the streets, but while living in the palace, he has learned to read, write and do sums unlike the prince who shirks his schoolwork.
In his most desperate attempt to get his fathers' attention, the prince decides to run away. He orders Jemmy to serve as his manservant during his journey. While on the run, the lads are picked up by two notorious highwaymen, who hatch a ridiculous scheme to ransom the prince. Cleverly, Jemmy, convinces them that he is the prince, and sets into motion a plan of escape. Stupidly, the prince misunderstands Jemmy's intentions and betrays him.
The boys escape and find a girl searching for her lost bear. She directs them to the river where they find a kind man with a wagonload of potatoes. The boys help the man free his wagon from the mud, and in return the potatoe man gives the boys, the girl and the bear a lift to the fair, but they are soon intercepted by the highwaymen.
The highwaymen are quite cross with Jemmy. Still believing him to be the prince, and believing it to be a crime worse than murder to beat the prince, they beat the other boy instead. The prince proves himself very brave by not crying out during his beating. He also demonstrates the beginning of a remarkable change in character.
Before things get too out-of-hand, the dancing bear chases the highwaymen away, and everyone arrives at the fair. The girl earns a few coins with her bear, the potato man boils the potatoes and sells them and the boys head down to the sewer to catch some rats. On their way, they hear some people gossiping about the missing prince. One woman make an off-hand remark about how much worse things will be when the prince becomes king. The prince's feelings are deeply hurt, but he does not reveal himself. When the boys learn that the king has posted a reward for the whipping boy, they slip into the sewers where they meet up with the highwaymen.
After tricking the highwaymen into the most dangerous sewer, where dangerous rats attack them, the prince decides that it is finally time to go home. When they return to the potato man the prince reveals himself and suggests that the potatoes man collect the reward for the whipping boy. When the prince explains the entire escapade to the king, the whipping boy is pardoned, and the two boys continue in the palace as the best of friends.
Characters in "The Whipping Boy"
- Jemmy the whipping boy, orphan, formerly self-employed as a rat catcher.
- Prince Horace - heir to the throne, brat. Misbehaves horribly in an attempt to win his father's attention.
- Hold-Your-Nose-Billy - notorious highwayman who stinks of garlic.
- Cutwater - henchman.
- Betsy - a fourteen-year-old girl with a dancing bear.
- Captain Harry Nihples - the potato man.
- Ol'Jonny Tosher - Jemmy's father's friend.
- Smudje - Jemmy's friend.
Allusions
The story has similarities to Mark Twain's The Prince and the Pauper though the case of mistaken identity is not based on a physical resemblance but rather on divergent display of character.
Awards and nominations
The Whipping Boy won the Newbery Medal in 1987, the most prestigious award in children's literature.
Adaptations
Fleischman's The Whipping Boy was the subject of a television film titled Prince Brat and the Whipping Boy in 1995 starring George C. Scott.[1] Sydney Macartney who also worked on The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles directed the film for Columbia Pictures Television.[1] Sid Fleischman wrote the teleplay.[1] The film won the CableACE Award that year.[1]
Sources, references, external links, quotations
- ^ a b c d "The Whipping Boy". IMDb.com Inc. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0111698/. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
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Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: The Whipping Boy |
- movie review, New York Times, September 1995
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Sarah, Plain and Tall |
Newbery Medal recipient 1987 |
Succeeded by Lincoln: A Photobiography |
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