Full Tilt

Blake’s growing self-confidence has a ripple effect on the park and its riders. Quinn’s brush with death—being nearly disemboweled and mummified—undermines his attraction to chaos. As Blake moves away from fear, Quinn moves toward it: “There were tears rolling down Quinn’s cheeks. He was afraid, and maybe for the first time in his life he was admitting that he was” (153). The mummification room scene is a pivot in the arcs of Blake and Quinn.

Again, Blake rescues Quinn from danger. This time, however, he is not standing on the sidelines in a panic; instead, he plays an active role and follows a plan. This thoughtful, logical action shows that Blake is closer to the inner balance that can free him. Quinn, on the other hand, is shaken by his lack of control and what it means for his identity: “He stared at the tray […] that held all of his facial rings. It was like his whole life was on that little tray: his alienation and his anger, his auto-destruct attitude” (154).

Except for the bus crash, Quinn shares Blake’s trauma. Primarily, their father’s abandonment and the rotating faces of their mother’s friends affect both brothers. Within that trauma, Quinn and Blake’s roles in one another’s lives are a rare constant. They exist on opposite ends of the risk-aversion spectrum, but their shared trauma—and their brotherhood—pulls them closer to the center. While Blake is seeking inner balance, he must also find balance with the people in his life, especially Quinn.

Blake and Quinn move closer to balance when Blake emerges from The Works. Quinn is waiting for Blake because he “never lost hope in me” (164). They cooperate for the first time as they approach the large stairs: “We’ll help each other up each step” (164). Their roles reverse as they attempt to board the Tilt-A-Whirl on the pyramid top. Blake leaps into his pod in a show of bravery, while fear paralyzes Quinn. Again, however, their brotherhood pushes Quinn to take a risk.

As Blake’s boldness grows, he inspires past and current riders to follow his lead. The rebellion of the riders against the park links directly to Blake’s journey: “Something was stirring in these people that hadn’t been here before: a sense of hope!” (155). The same line could apply to Blake, whose real-life fear defeated his hope for a better life. For example, leaving his home and going to college becomes a more hopeful enterprise for Blake as the novel progresses. As Blake narrates, “It’s not walls that make a prison, but the willingness of the prisoners” (155). For a long time, Blake has chosen safety over risk; likewise, the park’s previous riders have chosen complacency.

For example, when Blake falls into The Works, the imagery of cogs and gears within a larger machine represents the loss of individuality in society. The Works is the rote, unsatisfying life that Quinn warned Blake about in Chapter 3. The horror elements of The Works make this clearer: “they weren’t really holding the machinery. They were growing out of it, their flesh melding into the metal of the gear-work” (159). The enslaved riders are absorbing the tools of their menial lives into their bodies. If Blake decides not to move to New York, his life will parallel this; his fear will doom him to an unfulfilled life.

Just as Blake and Quinn find common ground at this point in their arcs, so too do Blake and Cassandra. She tells Blake, “Because of you, I’ve experienced fear for the first time” (160). Fear consumed Blake’s life after the bus crash; as Blake sheds his fear, Cassandra gains it. They have a deeper understanding of one another, one that benefits Blake. Their opposing trajectories meet in The Works.

Cassandra plays tempter once again. Now that she stands on even ground with Blake, however, her offer is more reasonable. By asking Blake to run the park with her, Cassandra approaches him as an equal for the first time. She tells Blake, “This place has always been out of balance […] I want to experience the balance you bring” (161). The offer tempts Blake because he seeks balance: “It wasn’t the power, but the peace that appealed to me […] The park would be different with me sharing the power” (162). Cassandra presents shared power as a type of balance, which would fulfill Blake’s goal as the protagonist.

However, Blake is seeking power over his own life, not those of others. For example, he doesn’t want to control Quinn’s chaotic behavior; instead, he wants to make peace with its benefits. Sharing control of the park with Cassandra would move him past balance. He would not only gain control of his reality but that of the park’s riders. As he narrates, “I suppose we can all be accused of using people in our lives, but I could never use people the way [Cassandra] did” (163). Sharing power would not solve Blake’s inner problem—it would be an overcorrection, a concept that hearkens back to Blake’s fear of driving unsafely.