Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Diary of a Wimpy Kid is written in first-person, and it is meant to imitate the daily entry style of a personal record of events. In other words, the book is meant to take the form of a diary, hence the name. However, Greg wastes no time correcting this notion. He insists that “This is a JOURNAL, not a diary” (1) because “diary” sounds more feminine, whereas “journal” is more gender-neutral. Because Greg is deeply concerned about personal appearances and doesn’t want to do anything that might be perceived as uncool, he is very careful to call this account a journal. Greg’s journal grows to symbolize the one place he can go to speak honestly about how he feels about his school, his family, and even his friends. At the same time, the journal also represents Greg’s fear of being seen as uncool, unmanly, or “wimpy."

Still, Greg has a lot of hesitation about agreeing to write in this journal. In his own words, “All I need is for some jerk to catch me carrying this book around and get the wrong idea” (1). Greg is fearful he might be bullied for writing his innermost thoughts because he has decided it is distinctly not masculine to talk about his feelings. In fact, Greg writes this whole thing was his mother’s idea, and while he agreed to write in it, he points out that “if she thinks I’m going to write down my ‘feelings’ in here or whatever, she’s crazy” (1). Greg decides that writing about his feelings is a great way to get made fun of, and as he begins a new year in middle school, he is very focused on projecting a certain image to become popular.

Greg justifies his decision by stating the journal might come in handy because “when [he’s] rich and famous, [he’ll] have better things to do than answer people’s stupid questions all day long” (2). Greg decides the journal will be a quick and easy way to tell his life story later on, so he reluctantly agrees to write in it. In this moment, the journal also represents Greg’s hopes and dreams for the future, and he records many of these hopes and dreams in the pages of his journal.

When Greg’s school announces the beginning of the wrestling unit, he is initially excited and eager to learn some moves similar to the professional wrestling shown on television. However, the wrestling unit quickly becomes a huge source of stress for Greg, and his fixation on getting a weight set grows to represent his tendency to throw himself into a project only to get bored with it and not follow through. Together, the wrestling unit and the weight set demonstrate Greg’s lack of commitment to bettering his situations.

On the first day of the wrestling unit in Physical Education, Greg discovers that he has been partnered up with his weird classmate Fregley, who is “the only kid light enough to be in [Greg’s] weight class” (83). By the end of the first lesson, Greg remarks that he wound up “getting WAY more familiar with Fregley than [he] ever wanted to be” (83). Greg is so determined to move out of Fregley’s weight class that he makes a drastic decision. He decides to start exercising for the first time in his life so he can bulk up and build some muscle. He also figures that putting on muscle “could actually come in handy down the road” (86), and he might be happier with his body later in the school year if he starts working out. Greg tells his parents that he’s “going to need some serious exercise equipment, and some weight-gain powder, too” (87), but his parents have their doubts. Mr. and Mrs. Heffley know that Greg has a tendency to quit projects halfway through, and they don’t want to spend lots of money on something their son might get bored with and give up on. Mrs. Heffley tries to give Greg a chance to prove his dedication, and his father hints that he might get a bench press for Christmas. Still, Greg wants immediate gratification and doesn’t understand the concept of having to work for the things he wants, and he claims that “if [he] get[s] pinned by Fregley one more time, [he’s] gonna have a nervous breakdown” (89). He decides to create his own weight set, but when this fails to meet his expectations, he gives up on the idea of working out. Greg gives up on this idea just like he gives up on most of his ideas. When he has to show any sense of dedication or commitment, he runs from a challenge and doesn’t push himself.

Sure enough, on Christmas day, Greg’s dad brings him into the garage and shows him “a brand-new weight set” that “must have cost a fortune” (125-126). Instead of being excited, Greg admits that he “didn’t have the heart to tell Dad that [he] kind of lost interest in the whole weight-lifting thing when the wrestling unit ended last week” (126). Greg’s statement proves that he was never that serious about actually putting on muscle: he just saw the weight set as a fix to a temporary problem in gym class. Greg’s flakiness and lack of commitment wound up costing his parents a lot of money. The weight set is just one of countless incidents where Greg thinks he wants something but changes his mind or loses interest at the last minute.