Mr. Popper's Penguins

Mr. Popper is thrilled when the great explorer, Admiral Drake, radios him directly from the Antarctic. The Admiral tells Mr. Popper to await a “surprise,” but he gives no further clues about what he is sending. Mr. Popper is restless with anticipation the following day and wishes that he had the distraction of his daily routine to calm him. Is this a common reaction? Why are people comforted by a familiar routine? What elements of a routine help to relieve stress?

Mr. Popper is very concerned about caring for his new penguin, Captain Cook, in the proper way. He pays a refrigerator serviceman his last $5 to customize the family’s icebox to house Captain Cook comfortably; however, he is somewhat guilty about doing so, in view of their reduced winter budget. He also plans to buy a second refrigerator to store the family’s food. How do you feel about Mr. Popper’s decision to spend his limited money in this way? Was he correct in his decision to spend money to make the penguin comfortable? Was he being selfish in terms of his responsibility to his wife and children? What might you have done in a similar situation in order to properly provide for the needs of everyone involved?

Consider the concept of a family keeping an exotic animal such as a penguin for a pet. In addition to other people being frightened of the creature, what are some of the other factors that might be considered in this situation? Do you think that a penguin could be happy living in a house instead of in the wild with other penguins? What are some of the other situations that might arise as the result of the decision to keep such a pet? Would this environment be fair to the animal, or not? Why?

Captain Cook spends a great deal of time gathering odd bits of material from around the Popper house and arranging them on the floor of his icebox. Mr. Popper explains that the bird is creating a “rookery,” or a nest. He is substituting household items for the rocks and pebbles that he would have used in the wild. Why do you think that Captain Cook is doing this? What instinct might he be following? What is the larger purpose of the rookery?

Mr. Popper is a good-hearted man. He wants to care for his wife and children as well as the penguins, and he is very upset when Captain Cook almost dies of loneliness prior to Greta’s arrival. Consequently, he hires an engineer to construct a freezing plant in the cellar for the penguins. The man also moves the furnace to the living room so that the Poppers can stay warm. This work is very expensive, and Mr. Popper has very little money due to his current period of unemployment. The engineer is worried, but agrees to let Mr. Popper pay for the bill on credit. What is your opinion of this arrangement? Did Mr. Popper act correctly in having this work done? Should he have discussed payment arrangements with the engineer in advance? Was this an intentional act, or is it merely the result of the fact that Mr. Popper is a dreamer who does not think about money very much?

When Mrs. Popper explains the desperate state of the family’s finances to her husband, he becomes very concerned. Their savings have been depleted by the expenses of renovating the house to provide the proper environment for the penguins, and the cost of the fresh fish they eat is very high. He saves the situation by creating an act that the penguins can perform in theaters in order to earn money for the family. How do you feel about training wild animals to perform tricks to entertain audiences? Do you think that this is an ethical thing to do? This book was originally published in 1938. Have attitudes about this issue changed since this time? If so, how are they different, and why?

When Mr. Greenbaum approves of the penguins’ theater act, he offers the Poppers payment of $50,000 for 10 weeks of performances with the birds. The Poppers close up their family house in Stillwater and set off for a tour of the country. Mrs. Popper worries that perhaps Bill and Janie should not miss so much time at school, but Mr. Popper says that “travel is very broadening” (110). The children are very excited at the prospect of traveling, as well as the idea of missing school. In your opinion, was Mr. Popper correct when he said that travel is broadening? In other words, is seeing new places and the ways in which other people live a sort of education in itself? Is it true that all learning must take place in a classroom, or are new experiences a way to learn, as well?

The Poppers and their penguins travel all over the country on a very extensive tour. The authors write that “[i]t was a long way now to the little house at 432 Proudfoot Avenue…” (117). Is this true only in terms of geographical distance? What else might the writers be inferring by this statement? Will the Poppers’ lives ever be quite the same again? Have they been changed by the penguins arrival in a positive or negative way?