Farley Mowat, Lost in the Barrens

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Lost in the Barrens

Farley Mowats Lost in the Barrens is a prime example of a piece of childrens literature that helps to advance the plot, and more importantly, convey a dual sense of both an antagonist against the boys struggle, and a benefactor, through portraying the local environment as a sentient force in the book. The land is seen not as an environment in which the boys are placed, so much as an enigmatic character in the story, whose allegiance and intentions are difficult to surmise. The boys originally contest the land and try to overcome it, but gradually become aware of the need to co-exist and respect the land, to eventually return home.

Primarily seen as an antagonist to the boys attempts to survive and return home, the land is harshly termed, evoking images of a domineering, relentless enemy. "The loneliness and immensity of the new wilderness seemed to close down upon them (Mowat, 8), the boys are overwhelmed by this awesome new force which till now has never had such a direct impact on their lives, even without doing anything, merely its presence over the boys, is enough to induce a sense of unfriendliness. The barrenlands encompass long stretches of seemingly endless abysses, a vivid backdrop to set two inexperienced boys against, to demonstrate the lesson of the text. Later, while following Denikazi along an unknown river, the land again purports its savagery in the description of the waters the boys are to navigate. The great river had an awesome majesty. The water was dark and heavy and the thrust of the current seemed to pass right through the canoe into the boys' bodies, so that they felt they were riding upon a prehistoric monster (Mowat, 45). These raging rapids are described in expressions that dominate the boys, instilling a fear about it. Clearly then Mowat is very selectively choosing language that helps to enhance the view of the land as an enemy that the boys are to overcome, at this part of the story. Being a story aimed at a younger audience, this method of subtly introducing manipulative language works better than in works aimed at mature discerning readers used to reading between the lines of everything they read, in subconsciously implanting these notions of natures relation to the boys.

As the boys continue in the story, they find themselves at times fighting against the land in an attempt to survive, and at times letting themselves fall in tune with it, similarly following the parallel thread of the perceived threat of the Eskimos. They quickly discover the pattern, as Jamie says, that whenever they have fought against the terrain and nature, they have met disaster, but the times that they have interacted beneficially with the land, they have met unexpected success. Clearly the land, through hard lessons, forces compliance, not rebellion This isnt just a revelation to the characters of a way to complete their expedition, but a valuable lesson that Farley Mowat is renowned for including in many of his works; a deeper understanding of, and mutually beneficial relationship with, nature.

Natures dualism in the novel is manifested in the role of Otanak, the infant caribou. The boys first encounter him after the killing of the caribou herd, and he becomes the solace that the land offers up to them in the loneliness of the barrens, another one left behind as his name means. A microcosm of the lands character, he begins to consume the insulation between the boys and the frigid winter outside of their shelter, and when they try to hinder him, he only continues his destructiveness towards them. However, once they appease and liaise with him, offering him Awasins mattress instead, he is content.

Near the end of the book, another microcosm for the boys increased understanding of the need to cohabit with nature is their interaction with the Eskimos. Originally afraid of the seemingly terrifying tribe, much as they were of the gaping landscape and overpowering natural forces, they initially met it with hostility, hoping to triumph over them. But like with their environment, the boys find themselves reconciling to the Eskimo, and finding a relation to him, much as they find their relation to nature. The ability of the boys to put their faith into the hands of a people that they feared took a great amount of personal strength and courage, and clearly showed the boys had gone through a major transition by this point of the book.

By the time the boys are reunited with their family, they have become men not due to their overcoming of nature, but due to their learning that the land is not an enemy to be fought, but an ally when one falls in line with it. Farley Mowat has used language fraught with mental imagery to depict the land as both frightening and malevolent, and as peaceful aide. Through the evolution of this understanding of the land, he brings the reader into a fuller understanding of the relationship between Man and the land, and leaves the impressionable young child with a value he hopes they will carry through life.

Works Cited

Mowat, Farley. 156. Lost in the Barrens. New York, New York. Bantam Books.

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