The Dragon in Ten Steps to Nanette: Character Analysis
Overview of the Dragon in Ten Steps to Nanette
The Dragon appears only in the Prologue, a self-contained fairy tale that opens the memoir. In that story, the Dragon eats three of Siffin’s relatives—Grandma, Joe, and Andrew—but then befriends Siffin and uses a magic kettle to transport them to an uninhabited island full of food. This brief but pivotal appearance sets up several of the book’s central concerns: the arbitrary nature of loss, the possibility of unexpected connection, and the search for a safe place after catastrophe. The Dragon is neither a conventional villain nor a hero; its actions are unexplained and its motives opaque, which makes it a rich figure for interpretation.
The Prologue itself is presented as a story within the memoir, and the Dragon functions as the final agent of change in that story. By sparing Siffin and offering him a new home, the Dragon transforms what could be a tragic ending into something closer to a utopian resolution. At the same time, the violence of eating three family members is never addressed, leaving a tension between destruction and care that resonates with the book’s broader themes of trauma and repair.
Plot Role
In the Prologue, the Dragon appears only at the very end, after Siffin has survived a series of escalating misfortunes: snakes behead his father, his mother is hanged, he kills sharks with his kicks, he defeats a champion in China, and he is run over by a bus. When the family arrives at Hooky Pooky for a holiday, they encounter the Dragon. The Dragon immediately eats Grandma, Joe, and Andrew, then looks at Siffin. Siffin says “Hi,” the Dragon replies “Hi,” and they shake hands. The Dragon then retrieves a magic kettle and says, “Take Siffin and I to where nobody lives.” They land on Holiday Island, which is full of food, and the story ends.
This sequence gives the Dragon a dual role: it is both a destructive force and a liberator. By eliminating Siffin’s remaining family, the Dragon removes the last ties to his previous life. By taking Siffin to an uninhabited island, it provides a fresh start. The Dragon’s actions are not motivated by any stated reason; they simply happen. This aligns with the memoir’s insistence that trauma does not follow a logical or linear path. The Dragon’s arbitrary violence and equally arbitrary kindness mirror the unpredictable nature of the events Gadsby describes in her own life.
Motivations and Traits Shown Through Actions
The Dragon’s motivations are never explained in the text. We can only infer from its actions. It eats three people without hesitation, which suggests a predatory instinct or perhaps a lack of regard for human life. Yet it spares Siffin, and the handshake implies a mutual recognition or respect. The Dragon also demonstrates agency by using the magic kettle to choose a destination—an uninhabited island—which suggests a desire for solitude or a specific kind of companionship.
The Dragon’s traits are similarly ambiguous. It is powerful enough to consume three adults, yet it communicates with a simple “Hi.” It does not speak further, so its intelligence or emotional capacity is unclear. The fact that it uses a magic kettle indicates access to supernatural resources, but it does not explain why it chooses to share that resource with Siffin. One possible interpretation is that the Dragon is lonely and sees in Siffin a fellow outsider. Siffin has just lost his family and has been forced into a dress that makes him uncomfortable; he is an odd figure in this world. The Dragon, too, is a creature apart. Their handshake might signify an alliance of the marginalized.
This interpretation is speculative, but it is grounded in the text’s details: the Dragon’s decision to spare Siffin after eating the others, and the immediate, friendly exchange. The Dragon’s actions are the only evidence we have of its character, and they suggest a being that is both dangerous and capable of unexpected kindness.
Chronological Arc
The Dragon appears only at the climax of the Prologue. The story follows Siffin from birth through a series of traumatic events, each more absurd than the last. By the time the Dragon appears, Siffin has already lost both parents, killed multiple creatures, and been injured. The Dragon’s arrival is the final turning point. It does not appear earlier, so we have no sense of its history or its relationship to the world. It is a deus ex machina of sorts, but one that is both destructive and redemptive.
The Dragon’s arc within the scene is brief: it eats three people, greets Siffin, and then uses the kettle to leave. There is no development beyond this. The Dragon does not change or learn; it simply acts. This static quality makes it more of a force of nature than a character with a journey. In that sense, it mirrors the way trauma can feel like an external, arbitrary event that alters a life without any logical cause.
Relationships
The Dragon’s relationship with Siffin is the only one that matters in the Prologue. The Dragon eats Grandma, Joe, and Andrew without any interaction; they are simply prey. With Siffin, however, the Dragon engages in a greeting and a handshake. This suggests a level of communication and mutual acknowledgment. The Dragon then takes Siffin to a new home, effectively becoming his companion or guardian.
The relationship is not developed beyond this moment, but it carries symbolic weight. Siffin has been alone and displaced throughout the story; the Dragon offers him a place where nobody lives, which could be read as a sanctuary. The fact that the island is uninhabited means Siffin and the Dragon will be alone together, forming a new kind of family. This echoes the memoir’s theme of interconnectedness and wholeness, where repair often comes through unexpected bonds.
Key Decisions and Consequences
The Dragon makes two key decisions. First, it eats Grandma, Joe, and Andrew. The consequence is that Siffin loses his remaining family, but he also loses the pressure to conform to their expectations—earlier, they forced him into a dress that made him uncomfortable. Second, the Dragon decides to spare Siffin and take him to Holiday Island. The consequence is that Siffin gains a new home and a companion, but also isolation from human society.
These decisions are not explained, and the consequences are mixed. The Dragon’s violence is not punished, and its kindness is not rewarded. This lack of moral accounting aligns with the book’s critique of redemption narratives, which often demand that suffering be justified or that villains be punished. The Dragon simply acts, and the story ends without judgment. This suggests that life’s events—especially traumatic ones—do not follow a neat moral arc.
Theme and Symbol Connections
The Dragon can be read as a symbol of the arbitrary and often destructive nature of trauma. In the memoir, Gadsby describes her own experiences of loss and violence, and the Prologue’s fairy-tale structure allows her to explore these themes in a displaced way. The Dragon’s eating of family members might represent the way trauma can sever relationships and upend a person’s world. The magic kettle and Holiday Island, on the other hand, evoke the possibility of repair and escape. This connects to the theme of art as reparative practice, where the act of creating a story can transform fragmented experience into something whole.
The Dragon also embodies the non-linear nature of memory and trauma. Its actions are sudden and unexplained, much like the intrusive memories Gadsby describes. The Prologue itself is a non-linear narrative, jumping from one catastrophe to another without transition. The Dragon’s appearance fits this pattern, arriving without foreshadowing and leaving without resolution. This aligns with the theme of trauma and non-linear memory.
Furthermore, the Dragon’s dual nature—destroyer and friend—challenges simple moral categories. It does not fit into a redemption arc, where a villain is defeated or a hero saves the day. Instead, it offers a different kind of resolution: one where destruction and care coexist. This resonates with the book’s critique of redemption narratives, which argues that stories should not force meaning onto suffering.
The Dragon’s use of a magic kettle also connects to the theme of women’s work and repair. In the epigraphs, Louise Bourgeois describes the needle as a tool for repairing damage. The kettle, a domestic object, similarly becomes a tool for transformation. The Dragon, despite its fearsome appearance, uses a household item to create a new life. This suggests that repair can come from unexpected sources, and that even destructive forces can participate in healing.
Finally, the Dragon and Siffin’s journey to an uninhabited island points to the theme of interconnectedness and wholeness. The island is empty, but the two characters form a bond. This implies that wholeness is not about returning to a previous state, but about creating new connections after loss. The Dragon, despite its violence, becomes part of Siffin’s new life, suggesting that even traumatic events can be integrated into a larger story.
Questions and Answers
1. Why does the Dragon eat Grandma, Joe, and Andrew but spare Siffin?
The text does not provide a reason. The Dragon simply eats the three relatives and then greets Siffin. One interpretation is that the Dragon recognizes Siffin as a fellow outsider, given Siffin’s earlier discomfort in the dress and his history of survival. However, this is speculation; the explicit fact is that the Dragon spares Siffin after eating the others.
2. What does the magic kettle do?
The magic kettle transports the Dragon and Siffin to an uninhabited island called Holiday Island, which is full of food. The kettle is the only magical object mentioned in the Prologue, and its function is to provide a new home for the two characters.
3. Is the Dragon a villain or a hero?
The Dragon does not fit either label. It commits a violent act by eating three people, but it also helps Siffin by taking him to a safe place. The story does not judge the Dragon’s actions, so it is best understood as an amoral force that both destroys and creates.
4. How does the Dragon’s appearance affect Siffin’s journey?
The Dragon removes Siffin’s remaining family and then offers him a new life on Holiday Island. This ends Siffin’s series of misfortunes and provides a resolution, though it is an ambiguous one because Siffin is now alone except for the Dragon.
5. What might the Dragon symbolize in the context of the memoir?
The Dragon can be interpreted as a symbol of trauma’s arbitrary and destructive power, as well as the possibility of unexpected connection and repair. Its actions mirror the non-linear, unexplained nature of traumatic events that Gadsby describes throughout the book. This interpretation is grounded in the text’s details, but it is not explicitly stated.
For further exploration of these themes, see the book overview and the ending explained. You can also browse questions and answers for more discussion.