The City of Ember

by

Jeanne DuPrau

Poppy Mayfleet Character Analysis

Lina’s younger sister. Poppy is a happy toddler who’s just learning to walk and talk, though she has a bad habit of running away from Lina if Lina gets distracted. She also is somewhat destructive, but not maliciously so—she discovers the Instructions for Egress and chews them, which turns deciphering the Instructions into a mystery for Lina. Lina is extremely devoted to her baby sister and takes on much of Poppy’s care. Because of this, Lina insists on taking Poppy with her when she and Doon escape from Ember.

Poppy Mayfleet Quotes in The City of Ember

The The City of Ember quotes below are all either spoken by Poppy Mayfleet or refer to Poppy Mayfleet. 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:
Coming of Age Theme Icon
).
Chapter 4 Quotes

“You haven’t forgotten the baby?”

“Oh, yes. She’s...I think she’s down in the shop.”

“By herself?” Lina stood up and ran down the stairs. She found Poppy sitting on the floor of the shop, enmeshed in a tangle of yellow yarn. As soon as she saw Lina, Poppy began to howl.

Lina picked her up and unwound the yarn, talking soothingly, though she was so upset that her fingers trembled. For Granny to forget the baby was dangerous.

Related Characters: Lina Mayfleet (speaker), Granny (speaker), Poppy Mayfleet
Page Number: 55
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 5 Quotes

Later, in her bedroom, with Poppy asleep, she took the two colored pencils from her pocket. They were not quite as beautiful as they had been. When she held them, she remembered the powerful wanting she had felt in that dusty store, and the feeling of it was mixed up with fear and shame and darkness.

Related Characters: Lina Mayfleet, Looper Windley, Poppy Mayfleet
Related Symbols: Colored Pencils
Page Number: 82-83
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7 Quotes

Lina rather liked having Mrs. Murdo around—it was a bit like having a mother there. [...] When Mrs. Murdo was there, shoes got picked up and put away, spills were wiped off the furniture, and Poppy always had on clean clothes. Lina could relax when Mrs. Murdo was around. She knew things were taken care of.

Related Characters: Lina Mayfleet, Mrs. Murdo, Granny, Poppy Mayfleet
Page Number: 71
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 18 Quotes

“Because that’s what I suddenly realized on the roof of the Gathering Hall, Doon. I’d been thinking before that I had to leave Poppy because she’d be safe with Mrs. Murdo. But when the lights went out, I suddenly knew: There is no safety in Ember. Not for long. Not for anyone. I couldn’t leave her behind. Whatever happens to us now, it’s better than what’s going to happen there.”

Related Characters: Lina Mayfleet (speaker), Doon Harrow, Mrs. Murdo, Poppy Mayfleet
Page Number: 247
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The City of Ember LitChart as a printable PDF.
The City of Ember PDF

Poppy Mayfleet Quotes in The City of Ember

The The City of Ember quotes below are all either spoken by Poppy Mayfleet or refer to Poppy Mayfleet. 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:
Coming of Age Theme Icon
).
Chapter 4 Quotes

“You haven’t forgotten the baby?”

“Oh, yes. She’s...I think she’s down in the shop.”

“By herself?” Lina stood up and ran down the stairs. She found Poppy sitting on the floor of the shop, enmeshed in a tangle of yellow yarn. As soon as she saw Lina, Poppy began to howl.

Lina picked her up and unwound the yarn, talking soothingly, though she was so upset that her fingers trembled. For Granny to forget the baby was dangerous.

Related Characters: Lina Mayfleet (speaker), Granny (speaker), Poppy Mayfleet
Page Number: 55
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 5 Quotes

Later, in her bedroom, with Poppy asleep, she took the two colored pencils from her pocket. They were not quite as beautiful as they had been. When she held them, she remembered the powerful wanting she had felt in that dusty store, and the feeling of it was mixed up with fear and shame and darkness.

Related Characters: Lina Mayfleet, Looper Windley, Poppy Mayfleet
Related Symbols: Colored Pencils
Page Number: 82-83
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7 Quotes

Lina rather liked having Mrs. Murdo around—it was a bit like having a mother there. [...] When Mrs. Murdo was there, shoes got picked up and put away, spills were wiped off the furniture, and Poppy always had on clean clothes. Lina could relax when Mrs. Murdo was around. She knew things were taken care of.

Related Characters: Lina Mayfleet, Mrs. Murdo, Granny, Poppy Mayfleet
Page Number: 71
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 18 Quotes

“Because that’s what I suddenly realized on the roof of the Gathering Hall, Doon. I’d been thinking before that I had to leave Poppy because she’d be safe with Mrs. Murdo. But when the lights went out, I suddenly knew: There is no safety in Ember. Not for long. Not for anyone. I couldn’t leave her behind. Whatever happens to us now, it’s better than what’s going to happen there.”

Related Characters: Lina Mayfleet (speaker), Doon Harrow, Mrs. Murdo, Poppy Mayfleet
Page Number: 247
Explanation and Analysis: