Veruca Salt (character)
For the 1990s alternative rock group, see Veruca Salt (band)
Veruca Salt is a character from the book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, written by Roald Dahl. She appears in the two film adaptations, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. In the 1971 adaptation, she is portrayed by Julie Dawn Cole, and in the 2005 adaptation, she is portrayed by Julia Winter. Veruca is the only child of the wealthy couple, Henry Salt and Angina Salt (a geography teacher in the revised book only, and named Henrietta the 1971 film), and is a terribly spoiled brat.
In all three versions, Mr. Salt owns a nut business. When Veruca announced she wanted a Golden Ticket, her father bought thousands of Wonka Bars, and made his factory workers open them. As three days passed, Veruca spent all of them kicking her legs about, while she screamed about how she wanted her Golden Ticket. Finally, a staff member found the ticket, and, as Veruca's father describes it in the book, she is "all smiles again."
Veruca also represents, as do the other "bad" children who visit the factory, one of the Seven Deadly Sins - in her case, Greed.
Veruca in the book and films
In each version, Veruca is portrayed as a spoiled brat, whose parents treat her like a princess and give her anything she wants, no matter how ridiculous the price. When Veruca is unable to get something she wants, she screams, shouts, kicks, and goes to extreme measures until she has her way. At the start, Veruca's parents both seem to view her as a sweet, innocent young lady; however, after getting ambushed and dirtied in the factory, these opinions change.
Book version
In the book, with illustrations by Quentin Blake, Veruca is portrayed as short (her height is never specifically stated), with curly blonde hair and a bow sitting on top. She is dressed in a frilly, pink and purple, tutu-like dress with pink gloves and purple shoes. A mink coat completes her outfit. In the book, she is seen to behave like the "typical" spoiled brat, who kicks, screams, cries, and is generally demanding and mean. She also appears to be a bit whiney, and childish at times. Her father seems to be aware of his daughter's bad behaviour; he confesses to Mr. Wonka that he knows his daughter is "a bit of a frump" but at the same time says that it's also no excuse for his daughter being burned alive.
1971 film version
In the 1971 film adaptation, Veruca has slightly curly, brown hair, which comes down to her shoulders. She wears a red dress with black buttons, light-colored tights, a white collar folded outward, and black, heeled shoes. Here, she looks much older than she does in the book and other film (around 13). Before entering the factory, Veruca wears a mink coat, and a mink hat over her dress (she also says she has three other mink coats at her home in England). In this film, Veruca is shown to be demanding, loud, and aggressive, sometimes resorting to threats. For example, she states her refusal to attend school until she gets her ticket. While she isn't particularly nasty to her mother, Veruca's "target" is her father, since he is easier to coerce. However, in one particular scene of the movie, she is very polite, especially to Mr. Wonka.
2005 film version
In the 2005 film adaptation, Veruca's hair is brown, pulled back with two fancy hair clips, and is styled in oversized ringlets. With her typical mink coat, she wears a pink dress with white tights, and black Mary Janes, carrying a little pink purse. She and her parents live in a mansion in Buckinghamshire, England; surprisingly, it look more like a royal palace. Her personality is neither whiny or aggressive in this version, but calm and straight-forward about what she desires. However, while waiting for her ticket, Veruca stomped her foot, demanding for her ticket. Only when she is denied what she wants does Veruca completely lose her cool. Like the 1971 movie, Veruca isn't particularly nasty to her mom, and her target is her dad. Also, she is very impatient and disobedient, as shown in various scenes of the film.
It should be noted that while Veruca is portrayed as British in the films, her nationality is never mentioned in the book (though it is hinted at, as she uses British words).
Veruca's punishment
In the book and 2005 film, Veruca's demise takes place in Wonka's nut sorting room. After being denied a squirrel by Willy Wonka and her dad, Veruca brazenly attempts to take a squirrel for herself; only to be grabbed and knocked down by the creatures. The squirrels drag her across the ground, deem her a bad nut, and throw her into the garbage chute, with her parents quickly suffering the same fate afterwards. Her fate is similar in the 2005 film, but her mother isn't present (although the Oompa-Loompas throw a painting of Mrs Salt down the garbage chute to emphasize how she, along with her husband, spoiled Veruca rotten during the song). Unlike the book, Wonka says that the furnace is always lit on Tuesday only but then mentions that the day of the factory tour is Tuesday but after Veruca's father falls down the chute, an Oompa Loompa says to Wonka that the incinerator is broken and there is 3 weeks of rotten garbage to break the fall of Veruca and her father.
In the 1971 movie, Veruca's exit is made in the Golden Egg sorting room. Just like with the squirrels, Willy Wonka denies her a golden goose, after which she sings her musical solo "I Want It Now", describing the things she wants, and how she'll scream if she doesn't get them. (This makes her the only kid in the movie to get her own song, although technically, Charlie did a duet with Grandpa Joe in "(I've Got A) Golden Ticket".) After making a mess of the room, she stands atop the egg sorting machine, is reported to be a bad egg, and falls down the garbage chute. Willy Wonka explains that the garbage chute leads to the furnace, although she may have gotten stuck in the pipes along the way. Her father quickly jumps in after her. It is not stated what became of her and her dad after this event and Willy Wonka says after Veruca's father disappears, "There's going to be a lot of garbage today" although the day of the factory tour was not one of the days when the furnace was lit.
At the end of the book and the 2005 film, Veruca and her father are shown exiting the factory, covered in large amounts of garbage. In the film, Veruca spots the glass elevator, and says "Daddy, I want a flying glass elevator." Her father then sternly states that the only thing she'll get that day is a bath (and that's final), leaving her with an angry expression, returned by her father. Presumably she won't be as spoiled now, and that her parents have been punished for not being responsible.
Veruca's Name
While all the names in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory are unusual for comic effect, a trend often shown in Roald Dahl's children's novels, Veruca Salt probably has the strangest name, as usually only the characters' surnames, such as those of Charlie Bucket and Mike Teavee are strange.
The Latin word verruca means "a wart." As Willy Wonka points out in the novel and in the 2005 movie version, a verruca is a "wart you get on the bottom of your foot".
- In the German version of the movie, the play on words does not translate. Instead Wonka says, "I once named a wart on my foot 'Veruca'
- The band Veruca Salt took its name from the character.
- A villainous female werewolf character in the television series Buffy The Vampire Slayer is named Veruca.
Veruca Salt Song
Plot
This song is performed after Veruca is sent down in the garbage chute (in the book and 2005 film, the squirrel nut-sorting room; in the 1971 film, the Golden Goose room).
What it talks about
In both the book's poem, and the 2005 lyrics, the song talks about what will become of Veruca as she falls down the garbage chute, as well as who is to blame for turning Veruca into a spoiled brat. The 1971 lyrics center around who is to blame for Veruca's spoiling. The end of the lyrics in the book and 2005 movie also focus on this as well.
Times sung
In the book, the song is performed after Veruca and her parents are thrown down the garbage chute. In the 1971 film, it is after Veruca and her father are thrown down. In the 2005 film, the song is performed after Veruca is thrown down and as Mr. Salt prepares to look down into the chute (it ends as a squirrel kicks him in the behind, sending him down the chute).
The 2005 version is sung in a psychedelic style.
Portion of lyrics
Book
But now, my dears, we think you might
Be wondering - is it really right
That every single bit of blame
And all the scolding and the shame
Should fall upon Veruca Salt?
Is she the only one at fault?
For though she's spoiled, and dreadfully so,
A girl can't spoil herself, you know.
1971 Film
Who do you blame when your kid is a...brat.
Pampered and spoiled like a Siamese cat.
Blaming the kids is a lie and a...shame
Do you know exactly who's...to...blame.
The mother and the father.
2005 Film
Veruca Salt, the little brute.
Has just gone down the garbage chute.
And she will meet, as she descends.
A rather different set of friends!
A rather different set of friends!
A rather different set of friends!
Trivia
- A continuity error in the 1971 movie is the scene where Veruca opens the candy pumkin and dips her hand in the chocolate sauce. A few seconds later, her hand is clean (they did a cut, then they washed her hands, most likely).
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