From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1967

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Download PDF

Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Prologue-Chapter 3

Chapters 4-7

Chapters 8-10

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Themes

Self-Discovery Through Adventure

The plot of From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler centers on Claudia’s journey to discover and distinguish herself after a childhood that encouraged conformity and compliance but not creativity. Rather than specifying what Claudia learns about herself, Konigsburg draws attention to the process by which Claudia does so, providing a template for self-discovery.

Seeking to shake up her monotonous life, Claudia goes on an adventure. Several elements of this adventure prove critical to her development. First, she attains a greater degree of independence and freedom to choose, beyond the influence of parental and other authorities. This allows Claudia to discover what kind of person she is when she is not compelled to act by outside forces. She finds she is ambitious and intelligent in her desire to learn but sometimes overbearing in her obsession with rules and proper behavior, as shown by her fixation on grammar and her initial reluctance to eat non-breakfast food for breakfast.

A second element of Claudia’s adventure that facilitates self-discovery is mystery. The mystery of Angel’s origin provides a compelling call to action for Claudia and Jamie, focusing and centering their efforts. Uncovering that goal provides motivation and context for Claudia’s attempts to understand herself; she notably identifies with Angel, feeling that she resembles the statue. Investigating the statue thus becomes a symbol for investigating her own identity, and her comments to Jamie at the train station emphasize the connection: “Jamie, I want to know if Michelangelo did it. I can’t explain why exactly. But I feel that I’ve got to know. For sure. One way or the other. A real discovery is going to help me” (119-20).

A third element of Claudia’s adventure is that of opposition. The challenges Claudia faces in struggling to live well away from home and to uncover the truth about Angel push her to her limits. Claudia’s successes and seeming failures along the way impact her confidence and humility, which in turn affect her openness to change. Her initial optimism in her abilities begins to fall as she realizes the magnitude of scholarship about Michelangelo. The well-meaning but condescending letter from the museum takes a further toll on her belief in herself. At the train station, when she and Jamie are about to give up and return home, Claudia reaches her lowest point, which enables her to receive Jamie’s suggestion that she stop correcting his grammar humbly rather than brush him off as in the past. In that same moment, her resolve hardens, and she recommits to her mission. Her discovery of internal strength at this turning point provides the foundation for her eventual discovery of Michelangelo’s secret at Mrs. Frankweiler’s home. Carrying that secret home with her parallels all that she has learned about herself through the ups and downs of her adventure. As Mrs. Frankweiler mentions in passing, “Often the search proves more profitable than the goal” (61).

The Enriching Influence of Art

A central theme of the novel deals with the potential for encounters with art to change and enrich people’s lives.

Konigsburg presents Claudia and Jamie’s encounters with art, and particularly with Angel, as transformative. This is due not just to the mystery and adventure elements explored above but also to the intrinsic aesthetic value of art. Whereas Claudia has studied art in the past and feels drawn to it naturally, Jamie is more skeptical and questions the museum as a choice destination. Once inside, however, he finds much to interest him, particularly the historical elements of art, whether that involves a potential murder, Egyptian tombs, or Michelangelo’s signature sign. Though Claudia is equally aware of historical considerations, her response to art is more intuitive, and she even expresses a desire to hug Angel, which Jamie ridicules. Despite their differences, each appreciates art in their own way, and the scene in which the two of them bathe in the museum fountains with sculptures of dolphins and water sprites symbolically reinforces this principle. Mrs. Frankweiler suggests that the sprites represent art while the change that people throw into the fountain traditionally represents their wishes. The arts thus collectively embody human wishes, dreams, hopes, fears, and more. As Claudia learns to access the beauty and power of art, she moves closer to the realization of her own dreams and identity. Jamie, meanwhile, softens in his objective, money-centered approach as he witnesses the importance that Claudia and, subsequently, Mrs. Frankweiler, attach to art.

In addition to Claudia and Jamie’s experiences, the character and commentary of Mrs. Frankweiler further explore the role and value of art. Mrs. Frankweiler goes to great lengths to immerse herself in art. In the newspaper article about Angel that Claudia and Jamie read, Mrs. Frankweiler’s former Manhattan home is described as a “showplace for what many considered one of the finest private collections of art in the Western Hemisphere. Others considered it a gigantic hodgepodge of the great and the mediocre” (59-60); Claudia and Jamie find her home in Connecticut no less impressive. Meanwhile, as narrator, Mrs. Frankweiler repeatedly stresses the value of visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art to Saxonberg. Her comments display an outraged tone: On one occasion, she is “furious” at the necessity of explaining certain aspects of the museum to Saxonberg. On another, she asks whether he is “altogether unconscious of the magic” associated with Michelangelo’s art (65). In the context of her impatient, no-nonsense characterization, Mrs. Frankweiler’s comments suggest that she views art not just as a nice hobby or a recreational escape but as a vital part of life. If she doesn’t say exactly what that vital role is, perhaps that is just another of her closely guarded secrets, an extension of her preference to leave room for mystery and magic instead of explaining too much.

Finding Strength in Difference

Through the relationship between Claudia and Jamie, Konigsburg explores the dynamics of teamwork to suggest that respect for differences within the framework of shared goals is the best pattern for success in group settings.

When they first team up, Claudia and Jamie clash because of their differences. Whereas Jamie is stingy with money and would rather camp outdoors than hide in a museum, Claudia is a big spender who likes to remain comfortable. In terms of temperament, Claudia is cautious not to draw attention to herself while Jamie enjoys being in the spotlight. Whereas Claudia is a conscientious student, daughter, and grammarian, Jamie is not particularly concerned about conforming to norms and expectations. As a careful planner, Claudia attempts to preserve a semblance of structure and order in their routines even while they are away from home while Jamie is more inclined to relax and enjoy himself. On these and many other points, the two children frequently find themselves at odds.

As Claudia and Jamie bond through working toward a common goal, they begin to see their differences as strengths, not problems. Mrs. Frankweiler highlights a telling moment early on when, after selecting a place to spend their first night in the museum, each expresses appreciation to the other. From that time on, they start “feeling like a team,” meaning their arguments “became part of the adventure, became discussions not threats” (39). Mrs. Frankweiler attributes this change in them to increased feelings of “caring” and “love” for each other.

With this foundation in place, Claudia and Jamie are better able to support each other while working to overcome their own problematic tendencies. For instance, Claudia’s insistence on correcting Jamie’s grammar angers him and serves little practical purpose. Toward the end of the novel, while Claudia reflects on her desire to change, she meekly accepts Jamie’s suggestion that she not fixate on his grammar. Similarly, as Jamie concentrates on their shared goal of traveling safely and getting to the bottom of the mystery surrounding Angel, he sets aside his tendency to hoard money, allowing their last funds to be spent on transportation. Sharing common goals and values enables each of them to make sacrifices and changes that benefit the group.

Claudia and Jamie’s newfound alliance is put to the test as they visit Mrs. Frankweiler, who playfully tests their resolve. First, she makes them wait uncomfortably before she acknowledges them. When she does address them, she shocks them with the revelation that she knows they are runaway children; she also threatens to call the police if they bore her. First together, then individually, she tries to get them to tell her where they were during the week, but each remains faithful to the other and to their shared secret until Jamie accidentally lets it slip out, through no lack of loyalty on his part. Finding that she likes the children, Mrs. Frankweiler takes them under her wing, showing another example of complementary differences, this time between youth and age. She even shares the secret of Angel’s origin with them, suggesting that they not only care for each other, but are joined in similar purpose.