Runt

“Only Runt lay awake, reliving it all. It wasn’t just Raven’s praise that filled him with such awe. It was everything he had seen, smelled, touched. He could hardly bear to let the memory of it slip away, even for the length of a nap.

Would they leave the den again? Would all he had just seen be waiting for them once more if they did?”

This excerpt from Runt’s thoughts comes after he leaves the den and sees the bright world beyond the dark cave for the first time. While his journey outside the den also includes his first taste of what it means to be a runt, including King’s stony silence and Bider’s taunts, Runt instead chooses to focus on the beauty and wonder of what he sees, showing his ability to find the best in situations. The final line is a reminder of Runt’s newness to the world and his strong desire to claim his place in it.

“Sometimes the pups took on one another’s names. One morning Runner jumped on Leader and knocked him to the ground, rolling him onto his back until he squealed with indignation. For the rest of that day Runner became Leader and the first Leader was without a name. That evening, though, Leader jumped Runner from behind, flipped her over and held her down, sharp baby teeth to her throat, and their first roles were restored.”

These lines support the link between names and character. While Silver names each pup for what she senses of them at birth, this does not mean that the pups may only display traits in line with their given names. As seen here, Runner can exhibit leadership qualities, and the hierarchy within the pack is open to change. Since Leader later regains his status, this passage also suggests that the wolves (and, by extension, people) will come back to their true nature eventually.

“Obediently, Runt lifted his paw and let the little fellow scurry away. What difference did it make that Chipmunk was small? He carried seeds to his family.”

After following the hunting party, Runt gets lost and asks a few creatures for help finding his family. The chipmunk is one of the creatures he asks, and this passage foreshadows Runt finding his place among the pack and learning that his size does not define him. Runt doesn’t take notice here, but he is bigger than the chipmunk, meaning that he is not the smallest creature around and that he has enough strength to lord power over smaller creatures if needed. Runt does realize here that the chipmunk has important work to do despite his size. Specifically, that work involves bringing food to the chipmunk’s family, which foreshadows how Runt calls his family to food in the final chapter and, thus, earns his new name.

“Runt lay perfectly still, his tail tucked, his legs splayed, waiting. Was Bider going to hurt him? It wasn’t possible. No wolf ever attacked another who surrendered so completely, especially a pup.”

Prior to this passage, Runt discovered Bider hiding food from the rest of the pack. Runt’s thoughts and actions here show that he is still naive about how the world works. He believes that if he appears small and weak enough, Bider will not hurt him, and while that ends up being true here, Bider’s threat makes it clear that he could, and very well might, harm anyone, even a pup. This also shows how Runt reacts based on his understanding of the world. When threatened, his place in the pack tells him to be subservient, so he is.

“Runt sat on the sodden ground and whimpered. Then, lifting his face to the sky, he began to howl. His howl spoke not of joy and longing, as the songs of wolves often do, but of loneliness and humiliation and sorrow. He sang of the storm that had driven him here. He sang of being the smallest, the least in the pack. He sang of the disappointment he knew would be waiting in his father’s eyes when the son who ran from storms found his way back home.”

This passage is an example of how Runt uses his howl to tell stories and deal with his emotions. His ability to do so here foreshadows how he finally becomes “Singer” and takes his place among the pack. This moment also offers a reminder of all the emotional turmoil that Runt faces—including his size and the perception that King is disappointed in him. By having Runt express himself in this way, Bauer also gives meaning to wolf howls, which often sound mournful to human ears.

“Humans are clumsy, weak creatures. They have no claws. Their teeth are dull. They can barely even run. Your father has no reason to be afraid.”

Bider says this to Runt after Runt returns from his first encounter with humans. Prior to this passage, King shouted at Runt to never go near humans again, and Bider uses Runt’s confusion to begin sowing seeds of doubt about King in Runt’s heart. These lines also show that Bider doesn’t understand any non-physical form of strength. He believes that humans are weak and have no power because they lack claws and sharp teeth. This attitude shows that Bider’s overconfidence is his main weakness, and this characteristic ultimately becomes the cause of his tragic downfall.

“Runt couldn’t help but laugh at such a boast. He knew who the most dangerous animal in the forest was. It was the wolf, of course. Dangerous to deer. Dangerous to the enormous moose, despite their heavy antlers and fierce hooves. Even bears gave the pack a wide berth.”

Here, the porcupine has just told Runt that it is the most dangerous creature in the forest, and Runt’s reaction shows both his naivety and his desire to emulate Bider’s arrogance. Runt’s thoughts represent his desperation to prove himself and his belief that bravery means never showing fear. Runt’s inexperience also shows in his belief that all other animals fear the wolf, and this foreshadows Runt’s later realization that, even though creatures like the moose may fear wolves, they can still present a threat to the pack.

“Thinker approached, too, though more cautiously. ‘That’s Porcupine,’ he murmured to Runt. ‘I think she’s best left alone.’

But Runt ignored his brother. Their mother must have made a mistake when she’d named him Thinker. He should have been called Worrier instead. He was always fretting about something.”

In conjunction with the previous quotation, these lines from Thinker’s dialogue illustrate the differences between Runt and Thinker. While Runt jumps into situations with no thought about how they could go wrong, Thinker uses his knowledge and understanding of the forest to assess and offer advice. Runt’s observation in the latter part of the quotation also suggests that names are a matter of interpretation. While Thinker is, as his name suggests, thoughtful and slow to act, Runt sees him as a worrier rather than a thinker.

“When the humans had pulled the last of the barbed quills from his muzzle, they released him. Runt didn’t move. He kept his eyes down, careful not to look at them directly. They were a great deal larger than he. Larger, even, than his father. Who knew what they might do if they were challenged?”

Here, the humans have just helped Runt in the wake of the porcupine’s attack, and this moment shows Runt’s inner conflict about humans and, indirectly, his conflict about whether to believe King or Bider about the world. Runt’s actions here also show that he is beginning to learn The Importance of Managing Risk. Though the humans have just helped him, they are still an unknown entity and very large, so Runt does what his instincts tell him to do—appear weak and nonthreatening in the hope that the potential danger will pass him by.

“Runt shivered. This dog was little better than a prisoner! No animal he knew kept another captive in this way. Still, when Goldie bent to lick Runt’s sore face once more, he closed his eyes, enjoying the touch of her gentle tongue.”

This passage comes after Goldie has explained her life with the humans—specifically, how she lets them chain and collar her in exchange for a comfortable life where she’s fed and cared for. As a wolf who has only ever known the freedom to do as he wants when he wants, Runt cannot understand Goldie’s choice to remain with the humans when they seem to have imprisoned her. This encounter crystallizes Runt’s understanding of The Tension Between Autonomy and Belonging.

“He found Raven by the lake getting a drink of water. ‘Is it such a terrible thing,’ he asked the glossy bird, ‘to be helped by humans?’

Raven, the usually talkative Raven, only spread his wings and flew away.”

Returning to the pack after the humans saved his life, Runt is met with disdain from his family and the knowledge that Thinker was badly injured. This situation sets up a new conflict within Runt that distances him from his pack. While Runt understands that King thinks humans are dangerous, he also owes the humans his life. Runt’s lack of status in the pack prevents him from convincing the wolves that the humans could help Thinker.

“His father didn’t speak, either, though at least his silence was familiar. What was not familiar was that King had quit watching Runt, quit taking note of his every foolish act, his every mistake. It was as though two of King’s sons had died from the porcupine’s blow, not one.”

Following Thinker’s death, Runt distances himself from the pack, both because he chooses to and because the pack pushes him away. Here, Runt deals with his guilt over what happened and his frustration that the pack refused to pursue help for Thinker because that help involved humans. This passage also highlights how lonely Runt is on the fringe of the pack. Before, he at least felt like he was part of the group, but now, King’s change in attitude makes Runt feel invisible. This moment marks a turning point in the narrative and a deepening of Runt’s internal conflict, making him more susceptible to the influence of the antagonist, Bider.

“One day the pups discovered Skunk, their noses twitching at the compelling and disgusting smell that hung around the waddling black-and-white creature. Runt was the only one with enough sense to stay back, proving his encounter with Porcupine hadn’t been entirely in vain. But it gave him little pleasure to avoid sharing his littermates’ smelly fate. His good fortune seemed only to prove in another way how little he belonged.”

These lines reveal that Runt has learned about the importance of managing risk through his encounter with the porcupine. Rather than leaping headlong into situations and not thinking about the consequences, Runt smells the skunk and hangs back, recognizing that this is not a creature he wants to get close to. While he feels good about the lesson he’s learned, he also sees how Thinker’s death has permanently changed how he views himself and his siblings. Instead of feeling good about his accomplishment, Runt realizes that, prior to Thinker’s death, he would have been out there with his siblings and also been sprayed by the skunk. Now, Runt is wiser but even more isolated.

“‘If he refuses to run,’ King commanded, ‘drop back. The ones who hold their ground are young and strong. We don’t want a fight.’”

These lines of King’s dialogue come during the pack’s rash of unsuccessful hunts. These lines call directly to the importance of managing risk and The Many Forms of Strength, as they display King’s wisdom and leadership qualities, which go far beyond physical dominance. Experience has taught King that wolves, while strong, are not invincible, and he knows that strong prey can put up a sufficient fight to harm the wolves. The wolves rely on pack strength—by working together, they can take down prey much larger than themselves. However, this means that they cannot risk losing members of the pack needlessly.

“The gift of Helper’s life was returning to the forest. Back to them all. As young as he was, Runt understood that. He understood, too, that there was nothing more he could do here.”

Helper’s death during the failed moose hunt is a growth opportunity for Runt. While Runt felt at least partly responsible for Thinker’s death, he realizes that there was nothing he could have done to prevent Helper from dying, which highlights the harsh world in which the wolves live. This moment also solidifies the importance of family to Runt, though he isn’t fully aware of it yet. In addition, Runt discovers his own fragility. This could have just as easily been him, and there would have been nothing the pack could have done to help.

“‘Help?’ Bider snorted. ‘Some help you would be. It’s your father I need. Your father and Hunter and Helper and—’

‘Helper is dead,’ Runt interrupted.

‘Silver,’ Bider finished, as though Runt hadn’t spoken. ‘Silver is a fine hunter. I would be glad to have her at my side.’”

This exchange between Runt and Bider is a turning point for Runt, though he doesn’t acknowledge it here. Up until now, Runt has viewed Bider as a formidable force in the pack and a brave wolf who isn’t afraid like King. Bider’s choice to follow the moose after Helper’s death shows both that Bider is overconfident in his abilities and that he cares more about showing off than about the pack itself. These lines also reveal that he still thinks of Runt as useless, confirming that his supportive attitude in the past has been a front to hide his true feelings.

“Runt had never had such an odd encounter. When a wolf sees a moose or a deer, a kind of contract passes between them. The creature says, Yes, you may take me or No, this isn’t my time, but always the prey understands. These cattle had no comprehension at all. Why, even foolish Rabbit knew better than to stand and stare into the eyes of a wolf!”

This passage again highlights how different animals become because of human influence. Earlier with Goldie, Runt saw how a canid could change because of human intervention. Here, Runt realizes that such changes are not unique to creatures like himself. The cows do not register Runt as a threat because they have never lived in the wild and experienced predation. This passage shows the effect of domesticity on animal instincts, as well as Runt’s uncertainty about how to act when faced with this new relationship to prey.

“Runt turned helplessly back to Bider. Surely, he would explain that the meat was good, tell King again how easy the beasts were to kill. But the white wolf, clearly disgusted, had walked away, too.”

King’s rejection of Runt’s gift of a cow’s tail, and his ongoing refusal to eat domestic animals, reignites Runt’s irritation with King. This moment is a catalyst for Runt’s later choice to leave the pack and join Bider. This moment also shows that Bider will not be there for Runt when it counts. Instead of standing to defend Runt, Bider leaves Runt to take the brunt of King’s anger, showing Bider’s cowardice.

“They came upon a raspberry patch and paused to sample and then to feast, but a black bear arrived, an enormous, cross male intent on the same berries, and they moved on.

‘Some confrontations,’ King said quietly, ‘aren’t worth the cost.’”

This passage again highlights King’s leadership qualities while supporting the importance of managing risk. The pack has still failed at most of their recent hunts, and while wolves are typically carnivores (meaning that they eat only meat), their desperation brings them to sample berries, which are outside their usual diet. King’s refusal to even entertain the idea of challenging the bear symbolizes the power that prey holds in the wild. The bear is stronger than all the wolves combined, and the pack knows it. Not even Bider objects, showing that he can be sensible even if he often chooses not to be.

“What was wrong with King? Was he so afraid of humans that he was afraid even of the placid, stupid beasts who supplied this marvelous food?

Runt shivered. What was wrong with him? He was questioning his own father.

And yet the question remained.”

Here, Runt becomes fully aware of the inner conflict he faces about King and Bider. Though King has been distant and disdainful toward Runt, Runt still looks up to King, both as his father and as the leader of the pack. Runt’s sense of loyalty to King is not endless, however. Since Runt doesn’t understand why King is against eating the humans’ cows, Runt interprets King’s stance with the information he has available to him, which brings Runt to incorrect conclusions and demonstrates that managing risk requires having reliable information.

“If Bider had been the winner, King might never have risen again. Compassion was not in the white wolf’s nature. But King was the one on top, and he had always ruled with a gentle authority. He stood for a long time, staring down at his would-be usurper, then took a quiet step back, allowing Bider to find his feet once more.”

This moment symbolizes King’s rightful authority as the leader of the pack and hints at why Bider was deposed by his former pack. King’s wisdom and gentleness keep him from killing Bider outright because he recognizes that Bider’s challenge is a representation of Bider’s own flaws, not his external conflict with King. This moment also cements the book firmly in the fiction genre, as dominance battles such as this one are uncommon among wolves in the wild. As a novel, Runt’s primary goals are narrative and dramatic rather than informative.

“The pack let out a collective sigh. Their leader would survive. If King survived, they would continue to be who they were meant to be, a family, each single wolf grown stronger for its connection with the others.”

By noting that “each single wolf grow[s] stronger for its connection with the others,” the narrative highlights the many kinds of strength. For the wolves, group strength is by far their greatest asset, and King is the linchpin that holds the group together. By including such a passage, Bauer shows both how Runt is part of the pack and how he is also on his own personal journey to find where he truly fits among his family. While Runt recognizes that he is part of this group, he also doesn’t yet understand why he is part of the group or what keeps him there when there are other choices—such as switching his loyalty to Bider. This moment foreshadows Runt’s discovery of his gift to the pack and the gaining of his new name.

“Runt looked for a long time at the dead animals scattered in the dewy grass. ‘Is it true?’ he asked at last. ‘Do humans really contaminate all they touch?’

‘Not all,’ Raven replied. ‘But enough.’”

This passage comes moments after Bider’s death from eating the poisoned cow meat. Runt also notices the other animal carcasses in the area, and together with Bider’s death, this helps Runt understand that King was right about the cow meat all along. This is the moment when Runt realizes that King is brave and a true leader, even if he doesn’t always explain his ideas or choices. Runt’s exchange with the raven solidifies what Runt has known about humans all along—that they are dangerous as well as helpful. Thus, Runt’s relationship with humans throughout the course of the book allows him to move forward with the idea that no species is entirely one thing, which is also shown by how different Bider is from the other members of the pack.