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Symbols
For Margaret and her friends, bras are some of the most overt symbols of adulthood and womanhood. Wearing a bra, they believe, means that they’re well on their way to becoming mature women—which is presumably why Nancy makes wearing a bra a condition of joining her secret club. This results in both Janie and Margaret having to ask their mothers to buy them bras so they can attend their first meeting; neither girl had been wearing one until that point. But for Margaret at least, Nancy’s mandate creates a convenient excuse to ask for a bra—and once she gets her bra and starts wearing it, it has the desired effect of making her feel mature.
However, the novel also offers many indications that the bra itself doesn’t make the wearer a woman—rather, the bras can also show how young and immature Margaret and her friends are. For instance, it’s humorous when Margaret decides to stuff her bra with exactly six cotton balls, three on each side, to attend Norman Fishbein’s Christmas party. Margaret might feel like she looks better and more adult with the cotton balls in her bra, but the fact that she has to create the illusion of breasts to feel adult only highlights how physically immature she still is. Similarly, at the first secret club meeting, Nancy refers to her friends’ new Gro-Bras (presumably, training bras) as “baby bras,” insisting that they need to work hard to grow breasts so they can graduate to wearing 32AAs like her. Nancy, who’s very insecure about her own body and development, means this as an insult—she believes she’s better and more adult than her friends because she’s wearing bras in a standard size (even a tiny one).
Bras Quotes in Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
The Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. quotes below all refer to the symbol of Bras. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 2
Quotes
“Oh, you’re still flat.” Nancy laughed.
“Not exactly,” I said, pretending to be very cool. “I’m small boned, is all.”
“I’m growing already,” Nancy said, sticking her chest way out. “In a few years I’m going to look like one of those girls in Playboy.”
Well, I didn’t think so, but I didn’t say anything. My father gets Playboy and I’ve seen those girls in the middle. Nancy looks like she has a long way to go. Almost as far as me.
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Chapter 4
Quotes
The teacher wasn’t in the room when we got there. That is, the real teacher. There was this girl, who I thought was the teacher, but she turned out to be a kid in our class. She was very tall (that’s why I thought she was the teacher) with eyes shaped like a cat’s. You could see the outline of her bra through her blouse and you could also tell from the front that it wasn’t the smallest size. She sat down alone and didn’t talk to anyone. I wondered if maybe she was new too, because everybody else was busy talking and laughing about summer vacations and new hair styles and all that.
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Chapter 6
Quotes
She got me out of the first bra and into the next one. I wondered how I’d ever learn to do it by myself. Maybe my mother would have to dress me every day.
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Chapter 7
Quotes
“Not me,” Nancy said, proudly. “Mine’s a thirty-two double A.”
We were all impressed.
“If you ever want to get out of those baby bras you have to exercise,” she told us.
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Chapter 13
Quotes
I tiptoed back to my room and closed the door. I stepped into my closet and stood in one corner. I shoved three cotton balls into each side of my bra. Well, so what if it was cheating! Probably other girls did it too. I’d look a lot better, wouldn’t I? So why not!
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Chapter 18
Quotes
To make matters worse I had to sit facing Laura Danker. I hated her. I hated her for being so big and beautiful and having all the boys stare at her, including Mr. Benedict. Also, I hated her because she knew she was normal and I didn’t know a thing about me!
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Chapter 19
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“Don’t you think I know all about you and your friends? Do you think it’s any fun to be the biggest kid in the class?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “I never thought about it.”
“Well, try thinking about it. Think about how you’d feel if you had to wear a bra in fourth grade and how everybody laughed and how you always had to cross your arms in front of you. And about how the boys called you dirty names just because of how you looked.”
I thought about it. “I’m sorry, Laura,” I said.
“I’ll bet!”
“I really am. If you want to know the truth…well, I wish I looked more like you than like me.”
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Bras Symbol Timeline in Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
The timeline below shows where the symbol Bras appears in Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4
...in the classroom at first, though Margaret initially thinks that one tall girl wearing a bra is the teacher. Margaret wonders if the girl is new, since she doesn’t talk to...
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Chapter 5
...reputation. She goes behind the A&P with Evan and Moose and has been wearing a bra since fourth grade. She probably has her period already.
(full context)
...that everyone make up a rule. Her rule is that everyone has to wear a bra. Margaret blushes and notices that Janie looks down; Janie probably doesn’t wear a bra yet,...
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...decide to meet on Mondays. Next Monday, they’ll bring their Boy Books and get their bras checked.
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Margaret spends all of supper wondering how to ask Mom if she can wear a bra. Finally, when Mom comes in to kiss Margaret goodnight, Margaret says she wants to wear...
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Chapter 6
...say no, since this is “culture.” Fortunately, the first concert isn’t going to mess with “Bra Day.” On Saturday, Moose cuts the lawn while Dad sulks. Margaret watches Moose and thinks...
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...wants to die of shame. In the teen department, Margaret looks at the displays of bras, panties, and matching slips—all she ever wears are white underpants.
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Mom tells the saleslady that Margaret needs a bra. Margaret hates it when the saleslady calls her “dear” and asks her to step up...
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Margaret undresses and puts on the first bra, but she can’t fasten it herself. Mom fastens it for her and asks Margaret how...
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...Janie turns red and tells Margaret that she’s here for winter pajamas. Margaret notices the bras laid out on the counter in front of Janie and says that she’s also here...
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Chapter 7
Margaret takes her bras upstairs as soon as she gets home. She fastens one around her waist and then...
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...calls roll (with their fancy names), the girls feel each other’s backs to check for bras. They’re all wearing a bra, and Janie, Gretchen, and Margaret are all wearing Gro-Bras. Proudly,...
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...God she’s been exercising and asks if he’s thought about helping her grow—she has a bra, and she’d like “something to put in it.” She also asks him to help her...
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Chapter 8
...struggles to think of a meaningful topic that she’d feel okay sharing with Mr. Benedict; bras, breasts, and Moose obviously aren’t appropriate. Maybe she could do her project on religion, so...
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...Margaret asks Grandma, in a whisper, if she can tell that Margaret is wearing a bra. Grandma says she can; it makes Margaret look much older. During the concert, Margaret makes...
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Chapter 10
...so many, but she knows she won’t look like Laura even if she stuffs her bra. She also wonders if it’s true that Laura goes behind the A&P with Evan and...
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Chapter 13
...them. Back in her room, she stuffs three cotton balls into each side of her bra. It’s cheating, but she looks better—and there are probably lots of other girls who stuff...
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Chapter 19
...tells her to think about what it’s like to be laughed at for wearing a bra, or to have boys call her bad names. Margaret apologizes and says that, truthfully, she...
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