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Sabrina Douglas
Eleanor’s stepfather Richie is the villain of the story. Cruel, abusive, lecherous, and vindictive, Richie seeks to physically and psychologically control Sabrina and all of her children. Eleanor hates Richie with every fiber of her being, and rarely makes conversation or even eye contact with him. Because of this, Richie is something of a shadowy, nebulous presence throughout the first portion of the novel—but as the story unfolds, Richie’s irredeemably cruel nature and predatory actions increase in frequency and intensity. Eventually, it is revealed that Richie has been the one leaving increasingly lewd messages scrawled on Eleanor’s textbook covers—she’d assumed one of her school bullies had been responsible for the brief, explicit missives. Once Eleanor realizes that Richie has been the one leaving the notes, she allows herself to finally see just how predatory Richie has been towards her all along—and understands that she is in danger of being physically or sexually assaulted by him very soon. Richie is completely one-dimensional in his cruelty, and the roots of his behavior are never explained. He seems to only crave the total annihilation of Sabrina’s agency and individuality—and Eleanor and her siblings’ as well.
Richie Trout Quotes in Eleanor and Park
The Eleanor and Park quotes below are all either spoken by Richie Trout or refer to Richie Trout. 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:
).
Chapter 8
Quotes
"What are you supposed to do when it gets too cold to play outside?" [Eleanor] asked Ben. […]
"Last year," he said, "Dad made us go to bed at seven thirty."
"God. You, too? Why do you guys call him that?" She tried not to sound angry.
Ben shrugged. "I guess because he's married to Mom."
"Yeah, but—" Eleanor ran her hands up and down the swing chains, then smelled them. "—we never used to call him that. Do you feel like he's your dad?"
"I don't know," Ben said flatly. "What's that supposed to feel like?"
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Chapter 14
Quotes
Until this moment, she'd kept Park in a place in her head that she thought Richie couldn't get to. Completely separate from this house and everything that happened here. (It was a pretty awesome place. Like the only part of her head fit for praying.) But now Richie was in there, just pissing all over everything. Making everything she felt feel as rank and rotten as him.
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Chapter 48
Quotes
"Why is your stepdad looking for you?"
"Because he knows, because I ran away."
"Why?"
"Because he knows.” Her voice caught. "Because it's him."
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Chapter 49
Quotes
How he looks at me.
Like he's biding his time.
Not like he wants me. Like he'll get around to me. When there's nothing and no one else left to destroy.
How he waits up for me.
Keeps track of me.
How he's always there. When I'm eating. When I'm reading. When I'm brushing my hair.
You don't see.
Because I pretend not to.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Eleanor and Park LitChart as a printable PDF.
Richie Trout Quotes in Eleanor and Park
The Eleanor and Park quotes below are all either spoken by Richie Trout or refer to Richie Trout. 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:
).
Chapter 8
Quotes
"What are you supposed to do when it gets too cold to play outside?" [Eleanor] asked Ben. […]
"Last year," he said, "Dad made us go to bed at seven thirty."
"God. You, too? Why do you guys call him that?" She tried not to sound angry.
Ben shrugged. "I guess because he's married to Mom."
"Yeah, but—" Eleanor ran her hands up and down the swing chains, then smelled them. "—we never used to call him that. Do you feel like he's your dad?"
"I don't know," Ben said flatly. "What's that supposed to feel like?"
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 14
Quotes
Until this moment, she'd kept Park in a place in her head that she thought Richie couldn't get to. Completely separate from this house and everything that happened here. (It was a pretty awesome place. Like the only part of her head fit for praying.) But now Richie was in there, just pissing all over everything. Making everything she felt feel as rank and rotten as him.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 48
Quotes
"Why is your stepdad looking for you?"
"Because he knows, because I ran away."
"Why?"
"Because he knows.” Her voice caught. "Because it's him."
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 49
Quotes
How he looks at me.
Like he's biding his time.
Not like he wants me. Like he'll get around to me. When there's nothing and no one else left to destroy.
How he waits up for me.
Keeps track of me.
How he's always there. When I'm eating. When I'm reading. When I'm brushing my hair.
You don't see.
Because I pretend not to.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
