Ivy and Bean

The story transforms “nice” into an insult and a symbol of a dull person. The narrator makes the link explicit when they say, “[N]ice, Bean knew, is another word for boring” (8). Ivy seems “nice” because she wears dresses and reads books. Bean assumes that the dresses mean she follows traditional gender norms for girls and, since she’s reading constantly, she infers Ivy isn’t up to anything eventful. Reading doesn’t require motion or dramatic activity, which Bean prefers. As Bean realizes that Ivy isn’t “nice,” she understands that there are multiple ways not to be nice. Reading and wearing a dress can be exciting. The books Ivy reads presumably relate to witches, and the dresses are a part of her witch identity. More so, reading can create adventure. The spells Ivy learns about in her book provide the basis for Ivy and Bean’s plan to get back at Nancy. Initially judging reading books to be too “nice,” Bean now sees the thrill their contents offer her and Ivy.

The symbolism becomes ironic, with the twist being that neither Bean nor Ivy are particularly mean. In other words, Bean and Ivy are, as their mothers say, “nice girls,” because they possess character traits connected to nice people.