The poem Matilda, by Hilaire Belloc is a typical story
written in simple verse format which tells of Matilda, who was prone to telling
lies. Known for works which were popularized in the late Nineteen Century and
early Twentieth Century,. The book containing the poem also appeals to those
who enjoy satire, and are familiar with the political time setting of the book.
This particular poem is an example of the messages written
by Belloc for a audience of children, and one can imagine the nanny reading
this to the children with a very animated voice, so as to entertain and to
educate the children in the particular vice of telling lies and the
consequences of being untruthful. Popularized in this edition, the poem was
illustrated by his friend Edward Gorey in almost a Monty Python sketch style.
Matilda comes over as the daughter of a wealthy family, and
when she calls for the services of the London fire brigade in a moment of
boredom, this causes chaos. Her aunt was aware of her vice and certainly had
more respect for people who told the truth. Coming to terms with the vice the
child had and her ability to tell such whopping lies, her aunt was to live to
tell the tale of how Matilda had indeed given the fire brigade a false alarm.
The meaning is very plain in the way the poem is written.
There is no real need to make an analysis of the meaning of the poem, though the
message is very subtle and the verse contains clever use of words, the
simplicity of which add to the impact of the message. Much as the “Boy who
cried wolf” fable by Aesop, Hilaire Belloc appeared to have a good
understanding of the vices of children, and although not clear from this verse,
one may even assume that he had a love/hate relationship with youth. He
demonstrates this in attempting to address the folly of their ways in many
of the cautionary verses presented, as well as admonishing the folly of adults
in other satirical works within the book. Having had five children, they would
certainly have influenced the writer and encouraged him in his humorous attempt
to provide guidelines for children with vices.
The story continues and Matilda’s Aunt is rather cross at
Matilda’s lies. Having to deal with the harm done to the family portraits by
the fire brigade hoses, the Aunt decides to punish Matilda by not inviting her
to a popular play. The very fact that the Aunt would normally have invited her
niece gives the impression of wealth and status, since at this juncture in
British history, working class people would not have had much to do with the
performing arts.Left at home, presumably alone, Matilda finds herself engulfed
in a real house fire, and opens the window and screams, her voice being ignored
by all and sundry