Northwind

“The moon-currents came once more into the cove and captured the ship.”

In keeping with the Norse motifs in the narrative, Gary Paulsen mimics the lyrical style of Icelandic sagas and songs. The hyphenated “moon-currents” is a kenning, a two-word form of figurative language used to describe a thing. In this case, a moon-current is a tide, with the kenning describing the way the water is affected by the gravitational pull of the lunar cycle.

“[I]t slid like a wooden feather on the water—and they were soon back at it, pushing the canoe back and forth across the surface. It was a game they loved, a kind of catch.”

The young orcas play with Leif’s canoe as if it is a toy. The author uses a simile to describe how small and light the canoe is compared to the hulking whales. This scene exemplifies how Leif, though captain of the canoe, is ultimately at the mercy of nature with little control over his small craft.

“And Old Carl had told him, ‘You have no father to give you a knife so this one you may have from me.’”

In ancient cultures such as the Norse and Anglo-Saxon, fathers passed their knives to their sons as a sign of coming of age and passing into manhood. Since Leif has lost his father, Old Carl steps into a father-like role for him. Old Carl giving Leif a knife also represents Old Carl passing along his wisdom.

“A blanket inside his stomach.”

As Leif learns to survive in the wild, obtaining food is his primary objective. Though salmon are plentiful, he finds that it’s not satiating. Once he finds the berries, his belly is satisfied. The author uses figurative language here to compare the food to a blanket covering and comforting Leif’s belly. Such figurative language often reflects the theme of Surviving Through Connection with Nature, hinting that resources in nature fulfill emotional needs as much as physical ones.

“Then the gray seemed to close in, come back again, cloud his thinking once more like a sullen mind-storm, and he had to stop it, stop the gray thinking.”

Leif wrestles with the grief of being the only survivor of the plague. When his mind wanders, the grief overcomes him, and he struggles to find a way out of the sadness. The author uses a kenning in “mind-storm” to describe Leif’s depression.

“[A]mid great clicks and chuker sounds he could hear-sense-feel through the sides and bottom of the canoe.”

Whales use echolocation to communicate with other whales. The author uses onomatopoeia as well as alliteration, assonance, and consonance to capture Leif’s experience of hearing and feeling the whale’s signaling. “Clicks” and “chuker” are examples of onomatopoeia, or instances of words that phonetically resemble the described sound. In addition, this description, like many others relevant to the whales, takes advantage of repeated consonant and vowel sounds to evoke a sense of a rocking boat, the vibrations of whale song underneath.

“[T]he water seemed to be boiling with fish.”

Witnessing the whale feeding frenzy is a sublime experience for Leif; he is simultaneously amazed and terrified. The author uses figurative language to describe the way the water looks as the whales use their bubble technique to gather the fish into one area.

“A dance, and he was thinking of making it into a chant-song.”

Leif uses recitations to commemorate significant moments in his journey. He composes a chant for Little Carl’s funeral. He uses the songs to set the moments apart and commit them to his memory. Although Leif’s ability to tap into the power of story will grow in the coming chapters, this moment is reflective of The Power of Story to Preserve Memory and Heal.

“Perhaps because they were not as many and took more time to pick, the blackberries seemed to taste especially sweet and rich, as if each berry was a special treat.”

When Leif first finds blackberries, he gorges himself until he is almost sick. The more he travels, the more he matures and learns to be resourceful and measured in his behavior. This moment reflects his growth as he slows down and savors the berries in appreciation of their sweetness. These moments of more practical growth metaphorically represent Leif’s developing maturity on other levels, acting as milestones along his journey of Self-Discovery Through Coming of Age.

“[T]he ravens sat around the fireplace and drying rack like a bunch of old men.”

Birds of several varieties plague Leif as he travels northward. The author uses a simile to compare the birds to grumpy old men waiting for their dinner. As much as the whales become like family to Leif, the birds are often a reminder of nature’s neutrality toward man. This environment will not grant Leif special treatment.

“If he had a chisel he could chip his story in stone or if he knew more he could make a rune stone.”

Runes are a system of symbols that symbolize words and ideas. Ancient cultures carved runic symbols into stone and wood to tell the story of their people. As Leif becomes more self-aware, he longs to immortalize his story and begins carving his narrative into wood. This urge, eventually, allows him to preserve his memories of his journey and to heal from its traumas.

“[H]e fell-almost gratefully-into a rhythm, sliding with the current when it moved north, tying off when it moved south, eating salmon and berries and finally, relaxed, numbed with peace, he would lie on his back in the bottom of the canoe with his head propped on his rolled blanket for a pillow and sleep.”

This passage describes how Leif has completely integrated into living in nature. No longer fighting the current, he submits to its will and relaxes into the beauty of living a simple life of solitude, sustained by nature.

“Nature put them there, or Odin, or the sea, and that was it.”

Odin is one of the chief deities in Norse and Scandinavian mythology. Here, Leif recognizes that he shouldn’t resent nature for its interference in his life. He acknowledges that all creatures, bodies of water, and landforms are put there by a force far more powerful than he can comprehend and that he must respect its authority.

“It would grow into a monster. An enormous ripping, sinking, savage whirlpool.”

The convergence of the tidal currents creates a violent, swirling gyre that could swallow Leif’s canoe if he can’t escape. The author personifies the whirlpool to emphasize its danger.

“[I]t seemed to be waving at Leif with its scraggly black branches, calling to him to come with it down into the dark places—and then vanish in a gulp as the current sucked it.”

The whirlpool is so strong that it swallows an upright tree. Using personification, the author portrays the tree as a living being to emphasize the destructive power of the maelstrom.

“And he was not dead, not ended, could hear the sound he made and could see the trees and feel the air.

Sweet air.

Air made of honey.”

Once Leif emerges from the Charybdis-like countercurrent, he sucks in air, which the author compares to honey given the sweetness of the relief it brings. The author employs these small repetitive phrases at the end of some passages to emphasize a theme or highlight important moments. These poetic devices mimic the bob-and-wheel technique used in ancient sagas and poems.

“The bear was like a possible storm and if it took Leif it would be the same as if a squall wind had come and blown the boy away.”

Leif struggles with avoiding bears throughout his entire journey. Learning how to deal with them becomes a significant part of his survival education. He compares a run-in with a bear to being caught in a violent storm, a force for which he is no match.

“The forest, the sky, the water—all of it had become his home.”

As he progresses in his journey, Leif comes to understand that he belongs outside in nature. This passage illustrates a moment of transcendence, in which Leif realizes he has become one with nature. His survival, he knows now, relies on fostering this connection.

“[H]e heard the top of the wave hissing at him and the canoe shuddered once.”

Navigating the changing waters becomes a metaphor for Leif accepting change in his life. After watching the dolphins harness the power of the cresting waves, Leif repeats the maneuver with his canoe. The author uses figurative language to indicate the power of the wave.

“[W]hen the water-thunder (as he thought it) seemed to have stopped, he started up again.”

The author uses a kenning to describe the concussive sound the calving icebergs make when they hit the water. The falling ice also creates large pressure gradient waves.

“[T]he surface seemed to be boiling with them.”

Leif witnesses another whale feeding frenzy, but this one is far larger and more chaotic than the first. The author uses figurative language to convey the appearance of the water, which is full of diving, hunting whales.

“[H]e wanted to stay awhile in this place, this place of beautiful magic and blue light that danced around and through him.”

Glacial ice often appears blue due to several factors including the compression of snow over time and the mineral content of the water. For Leif, it is a magical phenomenon that entrances him and beckons him to remain in the inlet for several days to marvel at its beauty. After the brutality of the feeding frenzy, the majesty and power of the serene ice seems all the more profound.

“[I]t became not a storyboard but a dream board.”

Leif’s search for identity reaches its pinnacle when he attempts to merge his conscious life with the unconscious dream world. This attempt to build a bridge to the spiritual world reflects Leif’s maturity and pursuit of self-actualization.