Pastoral

Literature and Julie and the Wolves

By: Sarah Davis

A popular quote begins, When something bad happens, you have three
choices: you can let it destroy you, you can let it define you or you can let it
strengthen you. Miyax, the main character of the childrens novel Julie of the Wolves,
repeats a similar motto to herself throughout her journey in the Arctic tundra:
Change your ways when fear seizes. Both of these quotes remind us that we do
have choices in life no matter how hard the decisions may appear; we just have to be
brave enough to choose the best one. Overall, the novel depicts the choices Miyax
makes as she journeys between two worlds: the ideal world as an Eskimo and the
actual world as an American.
Jon C. Stotts scholarly essay, Jean Georges Arctic Pastoral: A Reading of Julie
of the Wolves, uses these two contrasting worlds to support a central argument: that
Julie of the Wolves is considered Pastoral Literature. In order to convince his
audience, Stott defines Pastoral Literature and uses examples within the novel to
support his argument. After reading this essay, I was convinced of Stotts argument,
but some of his points have opened doors for further discussion and disputation.
Stotts definition of the term Pastoral Literature consists of three main
points: it is literature that makes contrasts between an ideal world and an actual
world, its main character will undergo different reactions and experiences along his
or her journey between both worlds, and lastly, that character will eventually move
from the actual world to the ideal world and then inevitably back to the actual
world.

First, Stott spends a majority of his essay unpacking what it means to be an

ideal and an actual world and how Julie of the Wolves portrays them both. In this
novel, Stott explains that the actual world is an urban setting representing turmoil
and the evil aspects of progress. He characterizes urban as an industrialized,
civilized and structured environment that centers on qualities such as wealth, greed
and anxiety (Stott 131). This world is a representation of American civilization and
Barrow, the small town where Miyax grows up.
I was able to find my own examples within the novel to support these
representations: Miyaxs own definition of wealth, Amys pen-pal letters to Miyax
and the people of Barrow. On page 19 in Julie of the Wolves, Miyax notes that an
Eskimos definition of wealth is to possess intelligence, fearlessness and love, and a
gussaks (white-faced) definition of the same word is to possess money and
luxurious goods. Within American civilization, greed is seen through Amys father,
Mr. Pollock. In the novel, he drives up to a random Eskimo girl (Miyax) and tells her
that his daughter wants to be her pen pal. He never asks Miyax for her consent
about the arrangement; he merely treats her as an object, only caring about himself
and his daughters happiness. Anxiety is also a major aspect of the town of Barrow.
Naka, Miyaxs father-in-law, abuses his wife and drinks, which is why Miyax often
escapes to be with her friend, Pearl.
Stott defines the ideal world as a rural setting and often references it as
pastoral life throughout his essay. Here, everything is natural, pure and calm and
consists of harmony among all of natures creations (Stott 131-34). Within the
novel, the Arctic tundra and seal camp represent this world. In contrast with

American civilization and Barrow, both of these places embody the characteristics of
contentment, harmony and cooperation. My own examples that support this
argument are Miyaxs contentment through her daily routines in the tundra and the
ways in which the wolves influence her life. On page 153 of the novel, Jean
Craighead George writes a crucial passage that supports this idea: Time
passedMiyax found her life very satisfying When she was not hunting, or carving,
she danced, sewed, chopped wood or made candles. This passage shows that Miyax
was content with her life in the tundra, with her pet plover, Tornait, and her wolf
pack.
Although this example supports the fact that the tundra is considered the
ideal/pastoral life, it also opens up a question for further discussion: what is the
ultimate goal of contentment within Pastoral Literature? What is the point of Miyax
going through her daily routine if there is ultimately no progress except mere
existence? After further examination, I have concluded that the answer lies in the
fact that Miyax is working for the betterment of others (specifically her wolf pack)
and helping them to survive as well as herself. She always shares her food and
shelter with the wolves and her bird. She learned these qualities not from her
American friend Amy or from Naka, but rather, from the wolf pack: everything each
wolf did was for the benefit of the pack as a whole. Miyaxs life at seal camp is
similar.
When Miyax describes her memories of seal camp with her father, she says
that they were infinitely good and depicts them as beautiful colors (George 76).
Harmony, which is defined by Websters dictionary as a pleasing or congruent

arrangement of parts, is the core of seal camp. The Eskimos at this camp hold the
Celebration of the Bladder Feast, where they perform a ritual of sending the seals
bladders back into the ocean so that the newborn seals can hold the bladders (or
spirits) of the old seals. This creates harmonic balances and allows the life cycle to
continue (George 77). The Eskimos could easily skip over this tradition, but they
instead work so that everyone benefits from seal hunting not just the hunters.
This plethora of contrasts within Julie of the Wolves supports the existence of
both an ideal and an actual world, making it Pastoral Literature. Scott continues his
essay by explaining that as Miyax moves between each world, the reactions she has
to her experiences along the way influence her future. This can clearly be seen by
the shift in her goals along her journey. At first, she fully intends to reach Point
Hope, where she can catch a plane to San Francisco and live with Amy in American
civilization (the actual world). However, there are specific points where she begins
to lean towards Eskimo life in the Arctic tundra (the ideal world) instead.
On page 122 of the novel, she declares that her Eskimo ulo (womans knife),
needles and matches are far more important to her than airplanes, ocean liners and
great wide bridges. This shows that throughout her journey on the tundra, her
ultimate goal to reach the actual world is slowly shifting toward reaching the ideal
world instead. This can be further supported on page 123 when George writes, To
amuse [Miyax], [Miyax] thought of the hill where the white house stood in San
Francisco. When it seemed almost real enough to touch, and very beautiful, it
vanished abruptly; for the tundra was even more beautiful Whereas at the
beginning of the novel, Miyax is so enamored by Amys house and her future pink

bedroom in San Francisco that she sleeps with one of Amys letters under her cheek
(George 70).
The third, and final, way Stott defines Pastoral Literature is by explaining
that even though Miyax moves from the actual world to the ideal world, she
eventually returns to the actual world because it is inevitable. He claims this to be
true because George weaves in carefully graded mixtures of the pastoral and
civilized elements of the two worlds within the novel (Stott 134). By carefully
graded mixtures, Stott means that there are some characters that are not clear-cut
ideal and actual, but are a mixture of both, and that the actual is taking over and
destroying the ideal. Stott uses this claim when writing that Miyax does not have a
choice in deciding whether or not to return to urban life at the end of the novel. No
matter what Miyax does to keep her Eskimo traditions alive, progressive life of the
gussaks will keep her from doing so.
This is where I disagree with Stotts theory. First, after reading the novel, I
dont believe George intended these examples to be called integrated mixtures
between the rural and urban worlds. I see them more in a positive light: as bridges
connecting both of the worlds. For example, it is clear that Amaroq, the leader of the
wolf pack, fully represents the rural world because he does everything for the
benefit of his pack, such as hunting for food, re-locating to new sleeping areas and
even accepting Miyax as one of them. It is also clear that Amy, Miyaxs pen pal,
fully represents the urban world because of her greed for an Eskimo pen pal and
treatment of Miyax as an object rather than as a human being. But, there are also
characters who sort of bridge these two worlds together. One is Miyaxs father,

Kapugen. At heart, he is an Eskimo and teaches the old traditions of his Eskimo
ancestors to Miyax. He participates in the rituals at seal camp and helps his friends
survive as well as himself. But, at the end of the novel, he adopts some ways of
American civilization. He marries a gussak (Ellen) and trades in his fur parka (a
symbol of the Eskimo) for a fire jacket (a symbol of the American hunter). Although
he still owns a kyak, harpoons and the furs of the animals he hunted, his house also
contains electricity, a radio and a coffee pot.
Similar to Kapugen is the young wolf, Kapu (whom Miyax names after her
father for a reason that I do not believe is coincidental). Similar to Kapugen, Kapu
bridges these two worlds by submitting to the wolf pack as well as to Miyax. He is
the only wolf that Miyax seems to have a real relationship with similar to a young
girl owning a pet dog. And when he is injured from the gunshots, Miyax is
responsible for healing him. But at the same time, Kapu still retains the essence of a
wolf living in the ideal world by learning from Amaroq in order to become a leader
of his own pack one day.
I also disagree with Stotts theory of Miyaxs bird-friend, Tornait, a famished
plover who shows up outside of Miyaxs tent one winter evening. Stott states: [The
Plover] has been chilled by exposure to the cold after the unnatural warmth of
Kapugens home. Symbolically, the birdhas been killed by civilization, and
Kapugen has been the agent (Stott 138).
I, on the other hand, believe that this bird is a visual representation of
Miyaxs pastoral life as an Eskimo as well as her resentment of American civilization.
So when she decides to give up on pastoral life at the end of the novel, naturally, the

bird dies. I examined three features of the plover that support this argument: it is
young, weak and golden in color. These three qualities describe Miyaxs passion for
Eskimo life. Miyax is young and so is her desire to preserve the ways of her
ancestors. Her new goal (to live as an Eskimo) is born right when Tornait shows up
outside of her tent in Part III of the novel. Although Miyax has a heated passion for
pastoral life, it is also weak. Just as Tornait is weakened by the harsh conditions of
the Artic tundra during wintertime, American civilization weakens any prospect
that Eskimo life will continue to exist. The tundras whiteouts make it almost
impossible for Tornait to hunt and are synonymous to American airplanes, which
make hunting much easier and pastoral Eskimo life less desirable. And finally, gold
symbolizes prosperity and wealth which is exactly how Miyax views Eskimos,
saying they are intelligent, fearless and are full of love (George 19).
As a reader, I feel that Miyaxs desires of pastoral living are unexpected, just
as a bird living that far north during the wintertime is unexpected for Miyax.
Because I view Kapugen as a bridge rather than a form of American civilization
overtaking the Eskimos, I find no truth in Stotts statement that the coldness of
Kapugens home is what kills Tornait. Rather, I believe that it is Miyaxs decision to
return to her father that kills him.
Finally, this is also why I disagree with Stotts argument that Miyaxs return
to the actual world (American civilization) is inevitable. Miyax does have a choice in
regards to what world she will live in she just happens to choose the actual world
over the ideal world. The main example I will use to support this theory is that
multiple times throughout the novel, Miyax repeats a specific phrase to herself that

gets her through her hardest experiences in the tundra: Change your ways when
fear seizes... for it usually means you are doing something wrong (George 42). It
was a phrase that her father taught her, and she always kept to it. After a cold chill
of fear ran up Miyaxs spine at the thought of starving to death without her wolf
pack, she decides to change her ways and take up hunting. Miyax instantly feels
relieved (George 42). And when she is frightened by the sounds of the tundra on
page 119, she kicks a stone to change something.
The one time she DOES NOT change her ways is in the second to last page of
the novel. She decides that her father is dead to her because he conforms to
American ways. I believe that she is scared to live on her own now that her wolf
pack is dispersed and she is faced with the work of adults (building a home,
continuing to gather food and starting her own Eskimo civilization). She is scared to
continue her life, and rather than focusing on changing her ways when fear creeps
in, she decides to focus on other questions like, The seals are scarce and the whales
are almost gone, and When are you coming to live with us in San Francisco?
(George 169) This ultimately allows the thoughts of a pink bedroom to forever sit in
the back of her mind.
If she would have continued changing her ways when she feels fear, she
would have found a new wolf pack, sought out a new husband and had the strength
and courage to create her own Eskimo civilization. Instead of being disgusted by her
fears as she was on page 119, she instead allows fear to grip and control her
thoughts which is why American civilization begins to grip and control the tundra.
It isnt that Miyax doesnt have a choice; she just makes the wrong choice. And once

she makes that wrong choice in her mind, thats when Tornait (symbolic of the ideal
world) passes away.
Ultimately, Julie of the Wolves is considered Pastoral Literature because it
portrays two separate worlds (the ideal and the actual) and shows how one
characters goals can change as he or she moves between the two worlds. In contrast
to what Stott says about the novel, Miyax has a choice to pursue either world. Rather
than overcoming her fears to start a new Eskimo civilization in the tundra, she
ultimately chooses to live with her father, who serves as a bridge between Eskimo
and American life. This piece of Pastoral Literature is significant as it reminds its
readers that overcoming fear is a defining point in decision-making.










Bibliography
George, Jean Craighead. Julie of the Wolves. New York City: HarperCollins Publishers,
1997. Print.

"harmony." Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2013.

Web. 28 March 2013.
Stott, Jon C. "Jean George's Arctic Pastoral: A Reading of Julie of the Wolves." Project
Muse. 3. (1974): 131-139. Web. 30 Mar. 2013.
<http://muse.jhu.edu/login?auth=0&type=summary&url=/journals/childre
ns_literature/v003/3.stott.html>.