This Was Our Pact

Ben’s journey to discover where the lanterns go is, in large part, a story about learning to embrace wonder and celebrate its presence in the world. While Nathaniel is already open to the marvelous and the strange at the beginning of the story, Ben has internal barriers that prevent his appreciation of the wondrous. Their repeated encounters with fantastical events and characters, Nathaniel’s reactions, and the fisherbear’s mentorship work together to shift Ben’s attitude and open him up to wonder.

Ben and Nathaniel’s quest begins because of their town’s annual tradition of releasing paper lanterns on the night of the autumnal equinox. The boys have been told that this tradition began because of a lantern maker from their town who became the first star in the sky. Although Ben is initially skeptical about taking this old story literally, it is clear that the boys come from a community where the possibility of the miraculous is taken seriously. This evocative beginning sets the stage for a journey filled with wonders. The boys set off into a deep blue, watercolor-washed landscape that is beautiful and dreamlike. En route, they encounter a talking bear, stone stairs leading out of the middle of a foggy lake, a maker of magic potions, enormous animals, mysterious troll figures, and lanterns that transform into glowing fish and soar up into the night sky.

However, Ben’s pessimism and skepticism prevents him from feeling uplifted or transformed by these magical experiences. In the first few chapters of the story, Ben resists engaging with these marvelous things and creatures, and he avoids the fisherbear, the lake that holds the stone staircase, the mysterious platform, and Madam Majestic’s cellar. His responses show that he is fearful and closed-off. When he sees the fisherbear’s basket, his first thought is that the bear will trap him and Nathaniel inside. When the bear tries to explain his own cultural traditions centered on the equinox, Ben thinks, “MY SUSPICIONS GREW” (37). Later, when Nathaniel excitedly shows Ben his costume in Madam Majestic’s cellar, Ben’s only comment is that Nathaniel looks “[l]ike a dork” (163).

By contrast, Nathaniel is better-equipped to appreciate these strange and sometimes awe-inspiring encounters. His constant chatter about space, his eager exploration of Madam Majestic’s cellar, his instant acceptance of the fisherbear, and his excited reaction to the platform lift demonstrate that he has an open heart and is a trusting, optimistic person. His easygoing and cheerful nature makes him open to the world’s wonders. In turn, they uplift him and give him joy.

As Ben observes Nathaniel’s reactions to the wonders in the world, Ben’s negativity begins to give way. As Ben becomes more open to possibilities and tries things he was at first fearful about or closed off to, he slowly experiences how a sense of wonder can transform the human spirit. In an important moment in Ben’s character arc, he accepts the fisherbear’s advice about taking advantage of the moment when they are in the cave that holds the star farm, and he joins the bear and Nathaniel for a swim in the dark water. This moment’s significance is underscored by the visual space dedicated to it and by the close-up view of the happy, contented expressions on the boys’ faces. Afterward, a changed Ben is fully prepared to appreciate the marvel of the lanterns that transform into luminous fish and leap into the sky to join the stars. Ben is awe-struck during this magical event, highlighting the growth he has undergone during his journey.