The BFG Theme of The Supernatural

Giant Country is a mystery. We hear lots of interesting facts about it from the BFG’s conversations with Sophie, but they don’t add up to a full story. We never solve the mystery of how the Giant Country or Dream Country came to be, or why humans have never been able to find it.

The point, though, is not to see a full magical world or understand its whole origin story. After all, the BFG keeps reminding Sophie that there’s a lot in the universe that we don’t know yet, or that is definitely there even if we don’t see it. It’s a fair point. Probably—we hope—there is no secret land that giants call home base for their human-hunting. But fun, whimsical details about blue rocks and frobscottle remind us of the beauty and mystery of our own world, and the importance of dreams to make it come alive.

Questions About The Supernatural

  1. What is the difference between the ways that the BFG and Sophie experience music?
  2. What does the BFG learn about plants and animals from his extra-sensitive ears?
  3. In The BFG, dreams are alive. How do different types of dreams behave?
  4. Why do the Heads of the Army and Air Force react with fear to the fact that they are flying off the known atlas?

Chew on This

Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.

The magical elements of The BFG encourage readers to be open to exploring the unknown.

The life cycle of giants make them more similar to elements of nature, like mountains and stars, than they are to humans.