Rabbit (Winnie-the-Pooh) - in The Books

In The Books

The first appearance of Rabbit is in chapter II in the Winnie-the-Pooh book by A. A. Milne. He also appears in chapters VII, VIII, IX and X of that book, as well as in chapters III, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, and X in The House at Pooh Corner.

While most of the cast in the books are based on stuffed animals owned by Christopher Robin Milne, Ernest H. Shepard's illustrations of Rabbit look more like a living animal. This idea is also supported by Rabbit's own comment to Owl, "You and I have brains. The others have fluff." Rabbit resembles a typical rabbit, except that he walks on two legs and uses his front paws as hands. The top of his head reaches about to Pooh's nose.

Rabbit lives in a house in the north-central part of the Hundred Acre Wood, between the sandy pit where Roo plays and the area where the animals he calls his "Friends-and-Relations" live. Rabbit likes to take charge and come up with elaborate plans, such as the one to scare Kanga by hiding Roo, and the one to "unbounce" Tigger. He is also an organizer, as in the case of the Search for Small. As detailed as his plans are, they often miss certain key points and go wrong.

Rabbit tends to include Pooh and Piglet in his plans, and he goes to Owl when there is "thinking to be done". He sees his relationship to Christopher Robin as being the one that Christopher depends on. While loyal to the friends he knows, Rabbit shows a certain reluctance to welcome newcomers, as evidenced by his initial negative reaction to the arrival of Kanga and Roo in the first book, and to Tigger in the second book. Nonetheless, he warms up to all of them in time.

Rabbit also has good relationships with the minor animals in the forest, known as his "Friends-and-Relations". Several are mentioned by name, including beetles called Small, Alexander Beetle and Henry Rush, and three unspecified creatures called Smallest-of-All, Late, and Early. According to the illustrations of the book, his Friends-and-Relations include other rabbits, a squirrel, a hedgehog, mice, and insects. At one point, Rabbit estimates that he would need "seventeen pockets" if he were going to carry all his family about with him. Whether that number refers just to his relatives or to the friends-and-relations as a group is unknown, if it had any basis at all.

In Return to the Hundred Acre Wood, Rabbit tries to organize things further. He tries to have a census in the forest, but it does not work out very well. Rabbit also attempts to teach a Household Management class and is the one who discovers Lottie the otter. His grandfather, Grandad Buck, appears in the book.