Migrations

Niall is Franny’s late husband. A brilliant ornithologist, Niall meets Franny while working as a lecturer at UI. Niall is passionate about the environment and outraged by humanity’s response to the climate crisis. In contrast to Franny’s optimistic nature, Niall is a pessimist who believes that “humanity is a fucking plague upon the world” (155). More than any other character, he sees the cruelty in the way humans have placed themselves above other species.

When Niall and Franny work at MERS, Niall vehemently disagrees with the approach taken by the conservationists, who prioritize saving pollinators and other animals that help humanity and seek to alter the behavioral patterns of wild animals for human benefit. Niall doesn’t believe an animal’s natural behaviors can or should be altered. He extends this same radical acceptance toward Franny, enduring her frequent flights and trusting her promise that she will always return to him. In turn, he promises to always find her, no matter how far she goes. After the still birth of their daughter, Franny’s several-month flight is too much for a grieving Niall. He ends their relationship: “I don’t want you chained to me” (232). This is an act of love. Niall would rather let Franny go than try to alter her natural behavior.

After his death, Niall remains in Franny’s life through her memories and the letters she writes to him. When Franny makes a final suicide attempt at the end of the novel, Niall holds up his end of their promise, guiding her back to the water’s surface. He reminds her that as long as pockets of wildness remain on the Earth and within herself, she can’t give up hope. The novel suggests that Niall’s death is the greatest separation he and Franny have ever endured, but, like every time before, they will eventually find their way back to one another.

Ennis Malone is the stoic captain of the Saghani. Beneath his weathered exterior he is a compassionate man who’s been wounded by the loss of his family. He initially dislikes Franny, but grows to care for her over the course of the voyage. He shares her self-destructive obsession and tragic past; Ennis was once married with two children but after his wife became ill with Huntington’s disease, he chose to leave her for a life at sea. Ennis and Franny bond over their struggle to reconcile their obsessions with their relationships, with Ennis wondering whether he can be “a father and a good man, and still be me” (115).

Ennis begins the novel preoccupied with the “white whale,” chasing a huge catch of fish. His character parallels that of Captain Ahab in Moby Dick, who is also obsessed with exerting his will over nature. Unlike Ahab, however, Ennis escapes his obsession before it destroys him. By the end of the novel, he no longer cares about catching fish and is content to revel in the miraculous resilience of the natural world.

Iris Stone is Franny’s late mother. She is abandoned by her father as a small child because he suspects that she is the product of infidelity. As an adult, her husband abandons her, leaving her highly sensitive to being left behind. Franny is the only familial connection Iris has left, which puts pressure on their relationship. After Franny runs away for several days, Iris takes her own life. Franny discovers her body, the trauma creating a fracture in Franny’s memory.