69 pages • 2 hours read
William Pene du BoisThe 21 Balloons
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1947A 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.
Character Analysis
Professor Sherman
The story’s protagonist, William Waterman Sherman, who has taught arithmetic to schoolchildren for 40 years, finally retires at age 66 and sets off on a balloon adventure. Gruff, smart, and scientifically minded, the bearded Sherman enjoys tremendously his flight across the Pacific, and he is delighted with the secret, wealthy village he finds on Krakatoa.
Though generally courageous, Professor Sherman is at first frightened by the constant volcanic rumblings underfoot, and during his balloon flight over the mountain’s glowing, smoky caldera, he feels terror and nausea. Sherman otherwise reacts with oohs and aahs at the marvels he witnesses on the island. His honest reactions add texture to his descriptions; these normal, average responses make his experiences easier for readers to understand and relate to.
Sherman gets his last name from the author’s mother, whose birth name is Florence Sherman. The professor wishes simply to be left alone to enjoy the peace and silence of the skies, but he discovers that his wish to travel is really a thirst for excitement. He bonds with the Krakatoans and their romantic sense of adventure; this helps him realize that, despite the dangers, his visit to the island simply increases his own yearning to explore the world. Thus, at story’s end, Sherman promises his audience that he will build a new balloon and resume his voyages in the sky.
Mr. F.
The first person Sherman meets on Krakatoa dresses elegantly, a sign of the wealthy lifestyle on the island. His adopted name, Mr. F., stands for France, and his large mansion reflects the French style, as is the cuisine he offers to all residents when it is his family’s turn to serve the meals for the day. The author makes Mr. F. the tour guide as an homage to his own debts to France: Much of his ancestry is French, he studied there for several years as a child, and he spent years there as an adult. Mr. F. is the book’s main supporting character; he serves as the principal voice of the Krakatoans, and through him the islanders reveal their secrets and argue for their way of life.
Mayor of San Francisco
The mayor of San Francisco plans a huge parade to welcome back Professor Sherman and conduct him to his lecture at the Explorers’ Club. Assisted by the city’s chief surgeon—basically, the leader of the local doctors—the mayor works diligently see that the recuperating professor is comfortable, that everything goes well during the parade, and that balloon decorations festoon the avenue and buildings along the route. As chief representative of the citizens of San Francisco—who are thrilled about the return of their wandering professor and anxious to learn the details of his adventure—it’s fitting and proper that the mayor should go to such lengths.
The author, though, makes gentle fun of all the fuss, and the mayor comes across as concerned mainly about basking in the reflected glory of Sherman. The mayor’s purpose in the story is to symbolize the silliness and self-serving motivations of many politicians.
Joseph Tomes
Joseph Tomes is the founder of Tomes Aeronautical Studios, which designs a horse-drawn, floating couch, held aloft by balloons, that can carry the mayor and Professor Sherman to the Explorers’ Club. Tomes and his company director give a demonstration for the mayor, but Tomes forgets he’s under a hydrogen-filled balloon and lights a cigar, which causes the balloon to explode, dumping Tomes and his director onto the street. Tomes is a minor character who represents the foolishness of people and firms who compete with one another for attention during a public event.
F-1
F-1 is the son of Mr. F., Sherman’s guide on Krakatoa. Like the other children, he’s between the ages of 10 and 15, which roughly matches the reading level of the book. Though a minor character, F-1 is featured in Chapter 8, when he shares a boat with Sherman on the children’s amusement ride, the Balloon Merry-Go-Round. The ride requires active participation by its passengers, and F-1 instructs Sherman on his duties. They join the boat race at the end of the ride, but Sherman, a poor sailor, so slows their boat that it comes in last, and he must apologize to the group for impeding F-1’s chances. Other than Mr. F., F-1 is the Krakatoan with whom Sherman has the longest sustained encounter. He is part of Sherman’s reversal of status on the island, from a teacher of children to their student.
