While Matilda proves charming in its portrait of a bright young girl who gains magical powers, the extent and origin of these powers aren’t clear. Roald Dahl’s Matilda is considered one of the greatest children’s books ever written. It has sold over 17 million copies and spawned two major films, which are now considered among the best Roald Dahl movies. The story follows Matilda Wormwood, a clever, book-loving young girl who finds herself neglected and abused at home and school, until she discovers magical powers that allow her to turn the tables on the cruel authority figures in her life.

Despite the work’s enduring popularity, Matilda almost looked very different. Dahl originally conceived the book with a much more cynical edge. In his early drafts, Dahl envisaged Matilda as a wicked and opportunistic child who causes trouble for her kindhearted parents and uses her magical powers to help an unethical teacher cheat at horse racing (via Oakland Press). It was Dahl’s editor who pushed the author to dramatically rewrite the story. It’s worth looking into just what those magical powers mean.

What Matilda’s Supernatural Powers Are

Matilda Has Psychic Powers

In 1996’s Matilda, as well as in the novel and the musical, Matilda’s main power is telekinesis. Her powers first materialize when she becomes angered at the injustice of Miss Trunchbull’s rule, and uses her mind to tip over a glᴀss of water with a newt in it. As the narrative progresses, her powers grow stronger. She hones her abilities by practicing with her father’s cigar, and before long, she’s able to blow up her family’s TV, levitate a room full of objects, and even summon the dexterity needed to telekinetically write a message with a piece of chalk.

Matilda’s powers are different in the book, where they are less reliant on Matilda’s emotional state and are limited to an object she’s directly concentrating on. In the 1996 movie, Matilda struggles to demonstrate her powers to Miss Honey when she’s not feeling angry, and there’s no limit to what she can do. In the musical, Matilda’s psychic powers also allow her to access the memories of Miss Honey. A story she tells about an acrobat and an escapologist turns out to be the true story of Miss Honey’s parents. It’s unclear whether Matilda can do this with everyone, or whether she shares a unique connection with Miss Honey.

Matilda’s Genius Intellect Seemingly Gave Her Magical Powers

Her Brain Was Under-Stimulated Due To No School And Watching TV

Matilda never fully explains how and why Matilda’s powers suddenly appeared, although the most plausible explanation comes from Miss Honey in the original novel. It’s clear that the young Matilda is a genius. At just 6 and a half (or 5 and a half in Roald Dahl’s story), Matilda is tearing through literary classics such as Moby Dick and already has an understanding of complex multiplication. Miss Honey theorizes that Matilda’s powerful brain is under-stimulated due to her poor schooling and TV-centric home life, so this unused potential manifests in psychic energy.

Why Matilda Loses Her Powers In The Book

Her Powers Begin To Fade Towards The End

While it doesn’t happen in the 1996 movie or the Matilda musical, the ending of Roald Dahl’s original novel sees Matilda losing her powers. In light of Miss Honey’s theory that Matilda’s powers come from her under-stimulated brain, it makes sense that they would begin to fade after Miss Honey moves her up to year 6, where her genius mind can be properly challenged. In the 1996 movie, Matilda has less need for her powers, but there’s no indication that they go away, even when her primary goal when using them was to fight injustice, and as a form of self-preservation.

Compared to the book as well as Matilda the Musical, the 1996 film actually uses her powers more frequently. The new film’s director, Tim Minchin, talked with Time Out about how much less she uses her powers in the musical as well as the book, indicating that one of the reasons Matilda from 1996 chooses not to have her lose her powers could be playing into the superhero fantasy. His full statement reads:

That’s a huge problem with the American film – they want her to be a superhero… But she’s not just a magic kid. It’s not until she goes to school and Miss Trunchbull becomes this evil woman who keeps changing the rules that the telekinesis comes. The magic happens because of Matilda’s absolute fury and desire to defend the people she loves. To short-change that is really annoying

Theories About Matilda’s Powers

She Could Have Been An Experiment

At first, young Matilda’s abilities only seem to become activated during moments of heightened emotion, particularly anger and injustice. Her powers initially appear while Miss Trunchbull is giving a speech about her unquestionable, god-like authority. It would seem that the neglected and abused Matilda’s powers manifest as a reaction to her sense of powerlessness, and by the end, she doesn’t need her powers anymore, given that she doesn’t have to fear either her parents or Miss Trunchbull.

Another theory revolving around how Matilda got her powers is possibly through genetics, as it explains that Harry isn’t actually Matilda’s father, and who Zinnia cheated on him with could be the one who pᴀssed his powers onto her. Another popular theory comes from a Reddit user who points to the idea that Matilda was actually experimented on by the government and was eventually adopted by the Wormwoods. No matter what, though, the prevailing theories around Matilda often make it seem even darker.

Source: The Oakland Press