Reason and the Supernatural

The novel is filled with supernatural events that force Allen and the reader to question their views on the world. The lines between reality and mysticism are blurred all throughout Alaska, as land untouched by civilization holds magic that few outsiders can understand.

First, the introduction and all future meetings with the old man suggest that something is very different in the untamed wilderness. From Allen’s first diary entry, both he and the reader know he is witnesses something incredible, even if it cannot be explained. He finds the man in a tree and writes, “I would find it a chore to climb a tree but could if needed. An old man with a lame leg – what could propel him upwards” (7)? He tries to explain it logically. Maybe the man got scared by a bear and the adrenaline allowed him to climb...