The Incredible Journey

Domestic pets beautifully straddle the line between the human world and their wild ancestry. There are many examples sprinkled throughout the narrative of Burnford delving into the ancestry of Bodger, Tao, and Luath. She details the way that the dogs feel roused and disturbed by the timber wolves that prowl nearby—as something primordial stirs within them in the presence of their ancient ancestor. She makes repeated references to Tao’s ability to adapt to wild life very easily—by virtue of his more-wild ancestry. However, the animal trio also sharply distinguish themselves from the wild environment through their connections to human beings, human psychology, and human life. For one, they love their human beings in a way that wild animals do not. Secondly, they are attributed nuanced human emotions by Burnford—while the wild animals, if given any emotional life, have very flat and one-dimensional emotions. These emotions guide their relationships with humans and their relationships with and loyalty to one another. So, while they can tap into certain wild gifts for survival from their wild ancestry, it is their inexorable progress toward their home with humans that ultimately animates them and separates them from the wilderness.