Harold's Growing Disorientation

Harold moves from confidence in a straight route to uncertainty in an expanding city before recovering orientation through a remembered relationship.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

Confidence in a Straight Line

The Wish Not to Get Lost A clear intention Harold makes a long, straight path so that he will not get lost. The line represents a belief that the right route can protect him from uncertainty. The first doubt The path does not seem to take him anywhere. Harold's confidence gives way to dissatisfaction, and he leaves the line in search of a shortcut rather than treating it as reliable guidance.

A Landscape Without Bearings

Uncertainty Multiplies No view of home The balloon offers a fine view but no house, and the house Harold then makes contains no recognizable bedroom window. The scenes provide possibilities without confirming where Harold is. An expanding puzzle He creates more windows and a whole city, yet none resolves his uncertainty. Harold's disorientation becomes sharper as his constructed world grows larger and less distinguishable.

Remembering an Anchor

A Familiar Relation Returns Recalling rather than adding After the policeman points the way he was already going, Harold walks wishing he were in his room. Then he remembers the relation between his window and the Moon. Orientation restored That recollection gives him the answer that the city could not. Harold makes a bed and goes to sleep, ending the disorientation with a return to a personal landmark.

At the start of the outing

After the mountain fall, while Harold searches from the city

Late in the story, after Harold walks with the Moon