The One and Only Ivan: the promise—a visit Summary & Analysis

the promise. Ivan wakes in the middle of the night to Stella calling for him. He runs to the wall they share, and Stella asks Ivan to promise her something. She says that she’s never asked anyone to promise anything, since promises are forever—and forever is even longer when one lives in a cage. Ivan reminds her that she’s in her domain and says that he promises. Stella points out that Ivan doesn’t even know what she’s asking for yet, and then says that it’s silly to ask for anything. Ivan surprises himself and says that Stella wants him to protect Ruby. Wincing, Stella nods. Stella says that she wants Ruby to grow up somewhere safe, not here. Ivan knows that it’d be easier to stop being a gorilla than to keep this promise, but he promises anyway.

knowing. Ivan knows before anyone else that Stella is dead. It’s just a thing he feels. He recalls that once, Stella had teased him that elephants are better than gorillas because they feel more emotions. She’d said that gorilla hearts are made of ice. Now, Ivan would give anything, even yogurt raisins, for his heart to be made of ice.

five men. According to Bob, who heard it from a rat, it took five men and a forklift to get Stella’s body into a garbage truck.

comfort. Ivan tries to comfort Ruby all day, but he’s not sure what to say. It’s not true that Stella had a happy life, or that she lived like she was supposed to. At least it’s true that she died surrounded by those who loved her most.

crying. That evening, Julia cries while George cleans. Ivan watches George confront Mack and hears a few words, like “vet” and “should have.” Mack says nothing and leaves. Ivan notices that George is crying when he cleans Ivan’s glass.

the one and only ivan. When the humans have left the mall, Ivan sends Bob to check in on Ruby. Bob returns and says that Ruby was shivering, so he tried to put some hay on her. He also told Ruby that Ivan was going to save her. Ivan glares, but Bob says he just wanted to make Ruby feel better—and Ivan promised Stella. Ivan says he shouldn’t have made the promise, since he can’t save Ruby or himself, then he flops onto the cement and notices that it hurts. Leaping onto Ivan’s belly, Bob notes that Ivan is the One and Only Ivan, Mighty Silverback. He tells Ivan to repeat the words. Bob licks Ivan’s chin and nose until Ivan complies. Looking up, Ivan notices that the moon, which Stella loved, is covered by clouds.

once upon a time. Ruby spends the night moaning and crying. Ivan stays awake in case she needs something, even though Bob encourages him to get some rest. After a while, Ruby calls for Ivan. She sobs that she misses Stella, her mom, and her sisters. She asks Ivan if he knows any stories and asks for one about Ivan when he was little. Ivan says that Stella was the storyteller, and he doesn’t remember. Bob adds that Ivan doesn’t remember much, so he’s the opposite of an elephant. Ruby sniffles and turns away. Ivan listens to her cry and then starts a story. He tries to remember.

the grunt. Ivan says he was born in a rainforest in a place that humans call central Africa. Gorillas, he explains, don’t name newborns right away like humans do. His parents named his sister Tag after she started chasing Ivan around the forest. Ivan loved playing tag with Tag. They’d chase each other and then jump on their father until he grunted to tell them to stop. To Ivan and Tag, the game never got old.

mud. Soon, Ivan’s parents named him too. He’d spend all day drawing with sap, fruit juice, and mud. They named him Mud—and to Ivan, his name was everything.

protector. Ivan says that his family was just like all the other gorilla families—it was a family of 10, and they were mostly happy. Ivan’s father was everything a silverback should be: he was a protector and a teacher. Nobody, according to Ivan, could “chest beat” like his father could.

a perfect life. Gorilla babies aren’t so different from other babies, except they ride on their mother’s back. As time goes on, baby gorillas learn adult skills, like how to build nests and be kind and loyal. Growing up as a gorilla is the same as growing up as anything else: you make mistakes and learn. For a while, Ivan says, life was perfect.

the end. One day, the humans arrived.

vine. The humans captured Ivan and Tag and put them in a crate “that smelled of urine and fear.” Ivan knew that to survive, he had to let his old life go. Tag couldn’t forget, though. One day, Tag looked at Ivan, and Ivan knew that she’d finally let go of her old life.

the temporary human. Eventually, Mack opened the crate, bought Ivan, and raised him like a human. Ivan did everything human babies do: he wore diapers, drank bottles, and broke things. Mack’s wife, Helen, got angry when Ivan broke things, including his crib, lamps, a couch, glassware, a blender, a TV, and his own toes. Mack and Helen took Ivan to a fast-food restaurant every weekend. They also went to movie theaters and the circus. Ivan thinks of his life as a human as being “glamorous,” though he knows that his parents wouldn’t have liked it.

hunger. Ivan says he was well cared for in his new life as a human. He had access to all sorts of foods, but it’s possible to be hungry for other things—like his family or another gorilla to groom him. He reminded himself to not think about the jungle so he wouldn’t end up like Tag, but he’d still lie awake at night and wish for another gorilla to lie with.

still life. One day, Helen came home with a painting of fruit in a bowl. She called it a still life. Ivan thought it was beautiful and reached out to touch a grape. Helen slapped his hand away. As Helen and Mack hung the painting in the living room, Ivan found a frosted chocolate cake in the kitchen. Rather than eating it, Ivan touched the frosting. It was like mud. He painted the white refrigerator with handfuls of the frosting. Ivan didn’t care that he’d get in trouble. He just wanted to be an artist.

punishment. After this event, Ivan wasn’t allowed in the kitchen again.

babies. Ivan explains that the Big Top Mall was smaller back then. Things changed when Mack brought Ivan to the mall, dressed in a tuxedo. People came from all over to take pictures with him. Once, Ivan got to hold a human baby. Ivan and the baby made faces and grunted at each other. Ivan was afraid that he’d drop the baby, so he held her tightly—but the baby’s mother snatched her back. Now, Ivan wonders if his own mother worried about dropping him and Tag. He thinks human babies are ugly, but human babies have the same eyes as gorilla babies: “too big for their faces, and for the world.”

beds. Ivan says that after weeks of “loud talking,” Helen packed her things and left the house. She didn’t come back, and Ivan doesn’t know why she left. But that first night, Ivan slept with Mack. Though the bed was flat and didn’t have sticks or leaves, Mack still rumbled in his sleep like Ivan’s father used to.

my place. Over time, Mack became sullen. On the other hand, Ivan became what he’s supposed to be: “too big for human life.” Though he tried to be calm, dignified, and dainty, it was hard to act like a human. So, Ivan was thrilled when he saw his domain. There wasn’t furniture to break—and it had a tire swing. The domain was a relief, though Ivan didn’t realize then that he’d be here so long. Now, Ivan says, he eats old apples and watches TV. But a lot of the time, he forgets what he’s supposed to be. He’s not sure if he’s a human or a gorilla. Humans have more words than they need, but there’s no word to describe what Ivan is.

nine thousand eight hundred and seventy-six days. Ivan watches Ruby and Bob sleep, but his mind is racing. He’s remembering his past for the first time. He realizes his story is odd, with an “endless middle.” Ivan notes that he’s counted every day he’s lived with humans—gorillas are good counters, though it’s not an important skill in the wild. Even though Ivan has forgotten a lot of things, he never forgets how long he’s been in his domain. Grabbing one of Julia’s Magic Markers, Ivan makes an X on his wall for every day he’s spent with humans. It takes all night to draw 9,876 of them.

a visit. Before dawn, Mack walks unsteadily to Ivan’s domain. He smells odd and has red eyes. He mumbles and says that he and Ivan have been through a lot.