Twenty Quotes Relating to Plot in Water For Elephants by: Sara Gruen

Andrew Koon
11-28-16
LIT1000
PSC

I don't talk much about those days. Never did. I don't know why-I worked on circuses for nearly seven
years, and if that isn't fodder for conversation, I don't know what is. Actually I do know why: I never
trusted myself. I was afraid I would let it slip. I knew how important it was to keep her secret, and keep
it I did-for the rest of her life, and then beyond. In seventy years, I've never told a blessed soul.
(Gruen, 4)
This morning, I had parents. This morning, they ate breakfast. I fall to my knees, right there on the
back stoop, howling into splayed hands. (Gruen, 19)
I snap out of my stupor. There are people on that train. It matters not a whit where it's going because
wherever it is, it's away from coyotes and towards civilization, food, possible employment-maybe even
a ticket back to Ithaca, although I haven't a cent to my name and no reason to think they'd take me
back. And what if they will? There is no home to return to, no practice to join. (Gruen, 24)
I know I ain't got no talking room, but a boy like you shouldn't be on the bum. I been on the bum and
it ain't no life. If you got a life to go back to, I reckon that's what you should do. It's a moment before I
can answer. When I do, my voice cracks. I don't He watches me for a while longer and then nods.
I'm right sorry to hear that. (Gruen, 52)
The whole thing's illusion, Jacob, and there's nothing wrong with that. It's what people want from us.
It's what they expect. (Gruen, 104)
I pretend it's a tropical shower, shaking my head and reveling in it. I even enjoy the feel of it down
there, on that shriveled pink snake that fathered five children so long ago. (Gruen, 108)
I remembered leaving my house for the last time, bundled up like a cat on the way to the vet. As the
car pulled away, my eyes were so clouded by tears I couldn't look back. For a long time, I felt betrayed
that not one of my five children offered to take me in. (Gruen, 109)
We scored a bull! Uncle Al shouts, spreading his arms wide in jubilation. His cane smacks a
groveler, who leaps backwards. Augusts face freezes. What? A bull! An elephant! You have an
elephant? No, August-you have an elephant. Her name is Rosie, she's fifty-three and she's perfectly
brilliant. (Gruen, 124)
I'm not sure how it happens-do I reach for her? Does she reach for me?-but the next thing I know,
she's in my arms and we're waltzing, dipping and skipping in front of the low-slung rope. As we twirl, I
catch sight of Rosie's raised trunk and smiling face. Marlena pulls suddenly away. I stand motionless,
my arms still slightly raised, unsure of what to do. I stare at her for a long moment. I want to kiss her. I
want to kiss her more than I've ever wanted anything in my life. (Gruen, 129-130)
What? I say. Oh, nothing, she says. Nothing. she continues to laugh, but looks perilously close
to tears. What is it? I say. Oh, she says, sniffing and bringing a finger to the corner of her eye. It's
just a crazy damned life, that's all. I take her by the shoulders and press my mouth to hers. (Gruen,
153)

I hate him. I hate him for being so brutal. I hate that I'm beholding to him. I hate that I'm in love with
his wife and something damn close to that with the elephant. And most of all, I hate that I have let them
both down. I don't know if the elephant is smart enough to connect me to her punishment and I wonder
why I didn't do anything to stop it, but I am and I do. (Gruen, 171)
I care for those horses daily. They had become as familiar a part of my scenery as Queenie, but after
seeing Marlena's act I'll never view the same way again. These horses are an extension of Marlena-a
part of her that's here, right now, with me. (Gruen, 202)
She tells me about meeting August-she was seventeen, and August was a force. Charming, gregarious,
and handsome as the devil. (Gruen, 221)
What is this? I look up. August stands in front of us. So, he says. Is this a post coital celebration?
Did I give you long enough? Or perhaps I should go away for a while and come back? He looks at me.
So where did you do it, eh, Jacob? Where exactly, have you fucked my wife? (Gruen, 243-245)
He takes one long step forward, leans down, and tries to rip the necklace from her throat. The clasp
holds, so he ends up dragging her by the neck as she screams. I launch across the open space and tackle
him. I am on top of him, pounding his face. (Gruen, 246)
Afterward, I curl around her like a spoon. We lie in silence until darkness falls, and then haltingly, she
begins to talk. She talks of the pain, grief, and horror of the past four years; of learning to cope with
being the wife of a man so violent and unpredictable his touch made her skin crawl. (Gruen, 272)
I'm late, she says. I beg your pardon? I'm late. For what? She raises her head and turns beat
red. I think I'm going to have a baby. (Gruen, 284)
The disaster march! he shouts, turning and bolting. It means something's gone bad-really bad. As
I approach the menagerie, the ground rumbles beneath my feet and it scares the hell out of me because
it's not noise. It's motion, the vibration of hooves and paws on hard dirt. I see that Rosie has pulled her
stake from the ground. The chain is still attached to her foot. She looks at me with bemused eyes. Then
her gaze shifts to the back of August's bare head. Don't do it! Don't do it! She lifts the stake as if it
weighs nothing and splits his head in a single clean movement-ponk-like cracking a hard boiled egg.
When the herd passes, the thing that was August is a tangled mass of flesh, innards, and straw. (Gruen,
308-310)
Dear god. Not only am I unemployed and homeless, but I also have a pregnant women, bereaved dog,
elephant, and eleven horses to take of. (Gruen, 317)
Are you sure about this? he finally asks. Yup. There's nothing wrong with me but old age. What
about your family? I'll send them postcards. I'm ninety-three. What have I got to lose? So what if
I'm ninety-three? So what if I'm ancient and cranky and my body's a wreck? Why the hell shouldn't I
run away with the circus? It's like Charley told the cop. For this old man, this is home. (Gruen, 330331)

Novel Analysis Paper

Sara Gruen's novel Water For Elephants is a riveting tale of adventure, romance, humor and
heartbreak. The story follows and is told from the perspective of Jacob Jankowski, a young man who is
unexpectedly thrown into the wake of tragedy after the sudden death of both of his parents, forcing him
to leave his college veterinary program. Following this, he decides to literally run away with the
circus, hopping aboard a train belonging to The Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth.
There, he meets a cast of dynamic and unusual characters, most notably August and Marlena
Rosenbluth, the animal care supervisor of the show and his wife, the circus's star attraction. However,
tensions soon rise after Jacob begins to fall in love with Marlena, much to the disdain of August,
bringing to light the truly evil, selfish, and abusive man August really is. With much suspense, humor
and heartache, Gruen concocts all the perfect ingredients necessary for a tale that takes both Jacob and
readers on the adventure of a lifetime.
In reading Water For Elephants, Gruen makes excellent use of setting the novel in both 1931,
focusing on Jacob's circus experience as a twenty-three year old man, and in 2001, focusing on Jacob's
life in a nursing home as a ninety-three year old man. Gruen paints a vivid picture in reader's minds of
what life was like as a member of a traveling circus, as well as staying in historical context, against the
backdrop of prohibition and the Great Depression. This continues in Jacob's descriptions and
encounters within his life as a resident of a nursing home in the present. In both time periods, Gruen
also makes use of a great deal of humor to keep readers smiling. For example, I pretend it's a tropical
shower, shaking my head and reveling in it. I even enjoy the feel of it down there, on that shriveled
pink snake that fathered five children so long ago. (Gruen, 108) Oh god. She's touching me-itexperimentally. I prop myself up on my elbows and look down. It's limp, a tiny pink turtle hiding in its
shell. It also seems to be stuck to my leg. (Gruen, 134-135)
In addition to being a story of humor and adventure, Water For Elephants is at heart, a love story.
The novel presents a love triangle, with Jacob shown as the hero, against August, the antagonist, and

Marlena, the damsel in distress. However, Jacob is a reluctant hero, who is thrust into the role as a
result of August's escalating violent behavior towards Marlena and the other female in his life: Rosie,
the circus elephant. He believes he has no other choice to save them both from August's abusive grasp.
He is able to accomplish this challenge, as well as complete his final veterinary exam, which opens the
door to a new life as a husband to Marlena, father and zoo veterinarian.
Overall, Sara Gruen's Water for Elephants is an enjoyable and educational read, teaching readers
about an anguished period in American history, along with the ups and down's of circus life, in addition
to learning many new and varying vocabulary terms, used frequently by the circus members in the
story. For example, the cooch tent- the depression era equivalent to a strip club, where men would go
for adult entertainment, and redlighting- the murder of circus workers who had become a liability, by
throwing them off the train while it is in motion at high speeds. Gruen also provides insight, giving
readers a glimpse into an elderly person's perceptions of nursing home life, and that regardless of their
age, they are owed dignity, attention, and remembrance that they may have a valuable story to tell.
Personally, I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to read this novel, as I had always held interest in the
piece, after viewing the film adaptation a few years ago, which I previously enjoyed. However, after
reading the novel and then watching the film a second time, I felt that the novel is a much better
representation of the piece, as the movie omits many key details that make the novel so enjoyable. As
previously stated, Water For Elephants is a thrilling, timeless tale of love, humor and adventure that
will both educate and highly entertain readers of many generations.