The Theme of Growing Up in Hellion by Julia Elliott

The short story, “Hellion” by Julia Elliot depicts a tomboyish teen girl who is entering from her late childhood to her teenage years. The setting takes place in a seemingly southern state in a rural suburban area as there is a lot of emphasis on the nature and outdoors in this story. In the short story, Elliot plays upon the theme of how growing up in an unstable home can be a difficult experience for children. This theme is conveyed through the formal elements of characterization through the main character, Butter, and the symbolism incorporated throughout the story.

Butter is the protagonist and is characterized as a girl who considers herself a hellion and plays with the local boys in all their rowdy outdoor games. She seems to be beginning to figure out her identity and what she wants to be in the world. The author integrates a physical description of Butter along with a characterization of her as Miss Edna “tried to get me in a dress now and then and said my towhead was too pretty for a pixie cut, especially since I was almost thirteen” (84). Butter has a strong personality and lack of caring of other people’s opinions which is displayed as she does not want to dress how someone else is telling her to. She is strong willed in her own opinion’s and speaks for herself which may hint that she has to care for herself and speak up for herself at home as her mom works a lot and her dad is an alcoholic. She is at this crucial age in which people are telling her who she should be and she is also figuring out where she fits in this world as she says, “I won’t never be a lady” (85).

Symbolism is presented and hidden within the story but a prevalent one is Butter’s pet alligator, Dragon. Elliot begins the story by describing the boys of the neighborhood torturing and playing Dragon while Butter asks why they would “want to mess with an innocent beast” (83). For the author to begin the story with a scene surrounding this beast, it alludes to an importance behind the creature and it may also hint to the later part of the story in which the father shoots and kills Dragon. Dragon is a symbol that represents Butter’s childhood. At the end, Butter begs her father not to shoot the alligator in which she is also fighting to keep her childhood because she does not want to grow up. This fear of growing up can be seen in her characterization as she seems confused and uncertain of who she is and who she wants to be yet. So, her father shoots and kills Dragon which is a representation of her father making her grow up and gain responsibilities because he lacks the ability to care for her as he is an alcoholic. One of the last scenes was Butter upset in the woods which shows also that she may now have a different perspective of the woods as they were welcoming but may now feel cold and scary. The woods have lost all of the magic once displayed leaving her sad and with the reality of growing up.