The main idea of Charlotte's Web by E.B. White is friendship. You kind of realize it throughout the book, but you fully understand it at the end. You realize why the characters did what they did, and you learn the true meaning of friendship. True friends never forget each other, kind of like real BFFs. There are fake ones, real ones, and the ones that you THOUGHT was real. True friends are willing to make sacrifices and help each other out. Sooner or later that friend will do the same for you, just like the saying "You scratch my back, I scratch yours". Last but not least, true friends accept each other for who they are. If you don't, then why even bother talking to that person if he/she disgusts you? So this is basically Wilbur's relationship with Charlotte.
On page 184, "Wilbur never forgot Charlotte. Although he loved her children and grandchildren dearly,none of the new spiders ever quite took her place in his heart. She was in a class by herself. It is on often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both". That basically sums it all. Friends are friends for a reason, and no one can replace them. Never forgotten, and always there in your heart. This reminds me of 3rd grade, when I had a friend, who I thought would end up as my BFF. Sadly, she moved away and i haven't talked to her ever since. Of course when friends go away there is a chance of being forgotten. The thing is that... I haven't forgotten about her, we just haven't talked or seen each other, and that makes me wonder. Would that be considered a true friendship?
Page 164, "You have been my friend,' replied Charlotte. 'That in itself is a tremendous thing. I wove my webs for you because i liked you. After all, what's a life, anyway? We're born, we live a little while, we die. A spider's life can't help be something of a mess, with all this trapping and eating flies.'" This was what Charlotte wanted to do before she died. Helping a friend, making loved ones happy, and work hard to save them. Maybe not of all these must be done, but it's what true friends might think of doing at least. OMG. As I'm writing this, it makes me think of my friendship with my old friend. I realized that she always helped me, she gave me more than I could ever ask for, and now she's gone before I even got a chance to do something back for her. This kind of relates to Wilbur, except Wilbur is taking care of Charlotte's babies so technically he is doing something to thank her.
Acceptance is one of the most important thing in friendship. If you can't accept each other for who they are, how would you expect to get along? Wilbur accepted Charlotte as a bloodsucking creature, and no I'm not over exaggerating, who is very nice, wise and fun to be around. Charlotte accepted Wilbur as a pig who complains a lot, but also eager to learn. This is true friendship. No matter how different they are, they will always stick together. Acceptance to me, is like when you get into a fight because of a disagreement, which could also be one of the different things between a friendship, and then you both work together to solve your little "issues" or not so little. I get into fights with my friend a lot, but hey, people say it's a healthy relationship.
In this book, Charlotte showed Wilbur her nature, how she survives and what she does to bugs that get caught in her web. It seems like Wilbur even forgot how gross he thought it was. They also learned to "scratch each others backs", and to always remember each other. They might have not been through much obstacles in a relationship, but they ARE the deffinition of true friends.
