The Eyes and the Impossible

In the novel’s first section Eggers introduces one of the adventure story’s central themes, The Fight for Freedom, through his protagonist, Johannes. Much of the action and suspense in these chapters come from Johannes’s capture by the Trouble Travelers and the daring rescue executed by his friends. Eggers’s novel also falls under the category of speculative fiction, incorporating imagined elements. Eggers gives the story a distinct voice by writing it from the point of view of a dog and using stream of consciousness, a narrative technique that mimics the natural flow of thought. The author also defies narrative convention by having the protagonist address the reader directly: “Have you seen me? You have not seen me. Not possible. You are mistaken. No one has seen me running because when I run human eyes are blind to me. I run like light. Have you seen the movement of light? Have you?” (12). Eggers uses this combination of stream of consciousness, repetition, and fourth wall-breaking in this excerpt reflect his narrator’s boundless freedom and vivacious energy.

Throughout the story, Johannes serves as an unreliable narrator albeit without intentionally misleading the reader. By his own admission, he is “not a math expert” (13). Johannes’s mathematical foibles add an element of humor to the text and give it a mythic sense of time and proportion. For example, Johannes’s certainty that he has known his friends for centuries underscores the deep affection and loyalty that characterizes his friendships with the other animals. His belief that he is responsible for watching over a domain “ten thousand miles along its length and about three thousand along its width” adds a sense of grandness and reverence to his perspective on his home (14). Even before Johannes learns that the park is on an island, he craves expansiveness. The dog’s overestimation of his age connects to another of his prominent traits—his initial sense of invincibility: “I cannot be defeated. Maybe I’ll never die” (14). However, the events of this section rattle his seemingly unassailable confidence and pride in his work.

The author introduces most of the key supporting characters in this section. The three bison preside over the park with leadership and wisdom as a unit while retaining unique personalities as individuals. Freya serves as a mother figure to Johannes while Meredith offers encouragement and Samuel provides humor. As the story continues, the bison reveal information that challenges the protagonist’s worldview. Attempting to free the bison from their enclosure becomes Johannes’s primary goal in the narrative. The Assistant Eyes, another important group of supporting characters, remain unflinchingly loyal to Johannes throughout the story, providing him with the support he needs to complete his character arc. Eggers quickly establishes Bertrand’s melancholy nature and closeness with Johannes, two traits that figure prominently in the climax and resolution. When Sonja first appears, the narrator describes her as “conflicted, tense, unsure” (27), but she gains confidence as the story goes on.

Eggers signals the novel’s thematic interest in the fight for freedom from his earliest characterization of Johannes. The protagonist adamantly stands by his decision to remain a wild dog rather than be adopted by humans like his siblings even though he knows want and hunger in a way he wouldn’t as a pet: “Not-free is not free. These kept dogs know the difference and have chosen the kibble in a bag” (20). Johannes’s cherished liberty is jeopardized when Twisty captures and leashes the proud, seemingly invincible dog for the first time in his life. Eggers uses Johannes’s inner thoughts to connect the scene directly to the theme: “And he tugged on the leash and oh oh oh, it was horrifying. To have this rope telling me where to go. I can’t explain the shock” (46). This experience has a long-lasting impact on Johannes’s sense of self and heightens his determination to remain free.

Johannes’s escape develops the theme of The Power of Friendship and Cooperation. When Bertrand flies to his aid, Johannes observes, “I had never been so proud to have such a magnificent friend” (56). The author emphasizes the importance of cooperation through the combined efforts of Bertrand, Yolanda, Sonja, and the flock of birds, all of which are required to pull of the rescue. The mission’s success proves that the animals are capable of extraordinary feats when they work together, foreshadowing the plan to free the bison in the story’s climax. In their role as Assistant Eyes, Bertrand, Sonja, and Yolanda also contribute to another of the novel’s major themes, The Importance of Beauty and Balance. Johannes and his friends’ work to preserve the park’s Equilibrium (capitalized throughout by Eggers to emphasize its importance to their worldview) presents a subtle way of explaining the value of respecting the environment. Eggers appeals to his audience’s sense of justice to make a case for animal rights and environmental conservation. While humans’ actions can destabilize the park’s delicate balance, they can also contribute to its beauty. For example, roller-skaters are Johannes’s “favorite of all the humans” because he deems their graceful movements “so beautiful” (32). In Johannes’s park, humans and animals can live in harmony and admire beauty together, but this balance requires careful maintenance.

Eggers employs symbols and motifs to add another layer to the story’s meaning. Running serves as a motif for the fight for freedom, and leashes symbolize captivity. Both appear in Johannes’s sprint through the park in Chapter 9: “I feared that at any moment the leash would tighten and I would be yanked back to that life. Oh! You cannot imagine! So I ran harder” (63). The leash prevented Johannes from running freely, so racing through the park allows him to assert his safety and liberty: “I ran until I saw the first lavender light of day, and I greeted the Sun with a happy grin and wild eyes” (66). The sun symbolizes goodness and gives insight into Johannes’s positive worldview. The optimistic dog reveres the sun, the source of light and warmth, as a deity, and reminding himself of this belief soothes him after his capture. Paintings, which serve as a motif of the importance of beauty and balance, play an especially important role in this section. The mystifying artwork becomes a dangerous distraction to Johannes when Twisty leashes him: “While looking at the picture, thinking of other worlds, I’d lost my freedom in this one” (47). As the novel continues, the protagonist must find balance in his appreciation of beauty.