Bildungsroman

There is no question that this short story is a bildungsroman. From discovering more about Old Ben to completely surrendering himself to the wilderness, Isaac McCaslin continuously grows throughout this novel. This is even prevalent when he gives up most of his fortune and gives it to part of the ‘family’ that truly deserves it. In this novel, the wilderness creates the environment for Ike to separate himself from his family history and find himself in complete solitude. Through this discovery of the wilderness, Ike also believes that land is not something that can be owned by men. But at the end of the novel, lumber rights to the land have been sold, and Ike takes the train into the forest for one last hunting trip. This illustrates the conclusion to a chapter in his life. This is the last time he will be here, and already everything has changed. It is no longer wilderness.