A book about 18th-century Maine wilderness that didn't talk about survival would be like a book about birthday parties that left out cake and trick candles and Aunt Martha pinching your cheek and telling you how big you've gotten. In other words, in The Sign of the Beaver, survival is an essential feature of the story. While Matt knows how to live in the natural world, Attean teaches him how to live with it, and because of this education, by the end of the book Matt feels totally confident in his survival, even with snow on the ground and no rifle. For Matt, it's a whole new way of seeing the world.
Questions About Man and the Natural World
- What is the biggest threat to Matt's survival in the wilderness?
- How might this story have changed if Matt lived alone in the woods in 2010?
- How does Matt's attitude toward the forest change as the story progresses?
- In what ways does Attean teach Matt to survive in the wilderness?
Chew on This
The biggest threat to Matt's wilderness survival is himself, not some big, slobbery beast.
Attean's teachings about the wilderness show how he really feels about Matt.