The flashback that Ivan, the mighty silverback, had was a very important part of the novel.

Ivan has never been able to recall his memory of his past, but in this scene he is inclined to tell Ruby a story. His flashback started when he was a little baby and stating how they named there children, Gorillas dont name their newborns right away, the way humans do. We get to know our babies first. We wait to see hints of what might yet be. (Applegate 123). Then he went on talking about how his family got taken surprise by the humans, but Ivan and his sister Tag got taken away and had to let their family die