Pollyanna Whittier
Chapter 3 - The Coming of Pollyanna
Pollyanna — aliases: the little girl, the child, Miss Pollyanna
Pollyanna arrives in Beldingsville, mistaken for Aunt Polly by Nancy. She cheerfully explains her red gingham dress and her father's instruction to be glad, despite her grief over his death. She talks continuously about her past, her love for carpets and pictures, and her excitement about her new aunt and home.
Chapter 4 - The Little Attic Room
Pollyanna — aliases: the little girl, the niece
Pollyanna ignores her aunt's coldness and the harshness of her new attic room, instead finding delight in the view from the window. She climbs the nearby tree and scales a large rock on the hill, viewing her adventure as a joyful opportunity rather than a transgression.
Chapter 5 - The Game
Pollyanna
Pollyanna cheerfully explains the 'just being glad' game to Nancy, detailing how she applies it to difficult situations like receiving crutches instead of dolls. She visits Miss Polly to express her gratitude for the bread and milk and her affection, then goes to her attic room where she confesses that she is not playing the game because she misses her father and feels lonely.
Chapter 6 - A Question of Duty
Pollyanna
Pollyanna greets her aunt with exuberant hugs and explains her view of life versus mere breathing. She accepts Miss Polly's harsh rules, the removal of her clothes, and her new schedule with polite obedience, internally deciding to find joy in the completion of her duties.
Chapter 7 - Pollyanna and Punishments
Pollyanna
Pollyanna joyfully shops for new clothes, delighting in the ability to choose them herself. After hearing Nancy's woes about her name, she cheerfully applies her 'just being glad' game to find humor in the situation. Hot and restless in her attic, she climbs out the window to sleep on the sun parlor roof, only to be discovered by her aunt and the servants, whom she greets with innocent affection regarding her new sleeping arrangement.
Chapter 8 - Pollyanna Pays a Visit
Pollyanna / Pollyanna Whittier
Pollyanna walks the streets and cheerfully greets a lonely man, who ignores her. She then delivers jelly to Mrs. Snow, who is hiding in a dark room, and gleefully fixes the sick woman's hair while complimenting her beauty, leaving her guest amazed by her own reflection.
Chapter 9 - Which Tells of the Man
Pollyanna
Pollyanna cheerfully greets the Man in the rain and then the sunshine, insisting he notice the weather and smiling at his scowls. She listens to Nancy’s description of John Pendleton as a rich recluse, mistakenly believing he is a missionary saving money for the heathen, and expresses delight that he now speaks to her.
Chapter 10 - A Surprise for Mrs. Snow
Pollyanna
Pollyanna visits Mrs. Snow with food, explains the 'just being glad' game by citing Mrs. White's story about hearing music, and leaves the invalid weeping. She later endures Miss Polly's coldness regarding her daydreams, receives orders to move downstairs, and rushes to report the news with exuberant physical displays of joy.
Chapter 11 - Introducing Jimmy
Pollyanna / Pollyanna Whittier
Pollyanna brings home a stray kitten, claiming Miss Polly is glad to keep it, and later finds a stray boy named Jimmy Bean. She introduces him to her aunt with enthusiasm, and when he rejects the label of beggar, she seeks to find him a home by speaking to the Ladies' Aid.
Chapter 12 - Before the Ladies' Aid
Pollyanna / Pollyanna Whittier
Pollyanna attempts to talk during dinner, blushing as she breaks off her 'glad' game. She secretly rejoices that her aunt is staying home, then travels to the chapel to plead for Jimmy Bean. She nervously presents his case to the Ladies' Aid, listens to their debate about sending money to India rather than fostering him locally, and leaves feeling sorrowful that the society prioritizes reports over local children.
Chapter 13 - In Pendleton Woods
Pollyanna — aliases: little lady
Pollyanna follows a frantic dog into the woods, discovers John Pendleton injured with a broken leg, and confidently enters his mysterious house to call Dr. Chilton for help. She returns to hold his head in her lap, offering comfort and asserting that he is kind inside despite his grumpy exterior, waiting patiently for the doctor's arrival.
Chapter 14 - Just a Matter of Jelly
Pollyanna
Pollyanna reacts with shock at the news of a funeral but quickly pivots to discussing her discovery of the injured Man in the woods. She attempts to rationalize the Ladies' Aid's refusal to take in Jimmy Bean by suggesting she write to them about him from a distance, then asks Miss Polly for permission to deliver jelly to the injured Pendleton. After Miss Polly's reluctant consent, Pollyanna leaves with the jelly, insisting she deliver it as her own gift.
Chapter 15 - Dr. Chilton
Pollyanna
Pollyanna delivers calf's-foot jelly to John Pendleton, cheerfully applying her 'just being glad' game to his injury and frugal habits, which shocks him by revealing her knowledge of his savings for the heathen. She rides home with Dr. Chilton, explaining her view that his work is the 'gladdest' business, and then inadvertently causes Miss Polly distress by bluntly confirming that her aunt did not send the jelly.
Chapter 16 - A Red Rose and a Lace Shawl
Pollyanna
Pollyanna joyfully combs her aunt's hair, dresses her in a lace shawl, and pins a rose in her curls, remaining oblivious to the distress she causes. She then rides with Dr. Chilton to fill a prescription for Mr. Pendleton, interpreting her aunt's frantic permission as genuine desire for the visit.
Chapter 17 - "Just Like a Book"
Pollyanna
Pollyanna happily complies with Pendleton's request to bring the carved box and listens to his stories with wonder. She reflects on the Ladies' Aid's choice of helping distant children over Jimmy Bean while observing Pendleton's sadness. She agrees to visit him often and later eagerly shares the details of the 'mystery' with Nancy, defending Pendleton's true nature.
Chapter 18 - Prisms
Pollyanna
Pollyanna visits Pendleton and is delighted by a rainbow on his pillow caused by the sun hitting a thermometer. She helps hang prism pendants in the window to multiply the colors, then explains the 'just being glad' game to him for the first time successfully.
Chapter 19 - Which is Somewhat Surprising
Pollyanna
Pollyanna discusses the 'just being glad' game with John Pendleton before he asks her to live with him. She misunderstands his longing for a past love as a desire for her aunt and excitedly proposes that Aunt Polly and she both move to his house, leaving the doctor to manage Pendleton's shock upon arrival.
Chapter 20 - Which is More Surprising
Pollyanna
Pollyanna eagerly visits Mr. Pendleton, insisting on her belief that he and Aunt Polly are lovers. Upon hearing the truth about his past love for her mother, she is shocked and tearful. She politely refuses his offer to live with him and take his money, citing Aunt Polly's importance, and casually mentions her conversation with Dr. Chilton.
Chapter 21 - A Question Answered
Pollyanna
Pollyanna confirms to Nancy that Aunt Polly wants her to stay and resolves not to leave. She visits John Pendleton to politely refuse his offer to live with him, citing her duty to her aunt. She then proposes Jimmy Bean as the 'child's presence' to brighten Pendleton's home. When Pendleton scoffs, she inadvertently reveals his secret 'skeleton in the closet,' which causes him to laugh and ultimately agree to meet the boy.
Chapter 22 - Sermons and Woodboxes
Pollyanna
Pollyanna finds the Rev. Paul Ford resting under a tree and, upon realizing he is burdened by trouble, shares stories of her father and the 'rejoicing texts' that comforted him. She explains how her father used these texts to develop the 'just being glad' game, leaving the minister visibly moved and inspired by her perspective.
Chapter 23 - An Accident
Pollyanna
Pollyanna visits Dr. Chilton to get a medicine prescription and clarifies that Mr. Pendleton loved her mother, not her aunt. She is later struck by an automobile, brought home unconscious, and upon waking, expresses confusion and an inability to feel her legs before being calmed by a nurse.
Chapter 24 - John Pendleton
Pollyanna
Pollyanna wakes up after a week and realizes she is injured rather than sick. She joyfully lists reasons to be glad about her condition, noting that broken legs heal unlike the invalidism of Mrs. Snow. She also expresses gladness that her aunt calls her 'dear' now, interpreting this as a sign of belonging.
Chapter 25 - A Waiting Game
Pollyanna — aliases: dear, the little gal
Pollyanna reacts with joy to the news of another doctor but is disappointed when Miss Polly rejects Dr. Chilton. She continues to apply her 'just being glad' game to her current state, expressing future gladness about returning to school and visiting friends, while growing pale and thin due to her immobilized condition.
Chapter 26 - A Door Ajar
Pollyanna
Pollyanna interacts with Dr. Mead, expressing her preference for Dr. Chilton and her gladness for the specialist's expertise. She overhears her permanent paralysis diagnosis, becomes terrified and wild-eyed, and later sobs in despair, asking the nurse how she can ever be glad again without the ability to walk.
Chapter 27 - Two Visits
Pollyanna — aliases: my little prism girl, the little injured girl
Pollyanna listens to the news that Jimmy Bean is being adopted and expresses genuine joy for both the boy and Mr. Pendleton. She casually mentions Dr. Chilton's philosophy about making a home, unintentionally causing her aunt significant distress before realizing her error in raising the topic.
Chapter 28 - The Game and Its Players
Pollyanna — aliases: the little girl
Pollyanna sits in bed, unaware of the game's widespread adoption until Miss Polly tells her. She innocently discusses Mrs. Payson's potential divorce and rings, expressing relief that the woman is staying with her husband. Upon hearing that the entire town is happier because of her, she finds immediate joy in the fact that she had legs to teach them in the first place.
Chapter 31 - A New Uncle
Pollyanna / Polly
Pollyanna joyfully welcomes Dr. Chilton, asks if her aunt approves of the visit, and upon hearing Aunt Polly's confession about Dr. Chilton, concludes that her aunt and the doctor belong together and that she is glad enough to forgive her injury.
Chapter 32 - Which is a Letter from Pollyanna
Pollyanna
Pollyanna writes a letter bursting with joy, announcing her ability to walk six steps from her bed to the window and expressing profound gladness for her recovery and for having witnessed Aunt Polly's wedding.