The Enormous Egg

Fishing appears frequently throughout the novel, most significantly as Nate’s treasured pastime. Every day, he hikes down to Loon Lake, sometimes with Joe Champigny, and boards his small rowboat. Nate’s technique is notably easygoing: “I dug out a fat old worm and baited up, and then made myself comfortable, kind of leaning back on the gunwale […]. Fish bite better if you just relax and don’t try to rush them too much” (18). This commitment to waiting, coupled with Nate’s fickle rate of success, suggests that fishing represents patience. As the novel progresses, fishing often coincides with examples of Nate’s fortitude, as he awaits Uncle Beazley’s hatching and endures the ensuing hiccups. For instance, it’s while fishing on Loon Lake that Nate initially meets Dr. Ziemer, who takes an interest in the egg and encourages Nate to keep waiting. And later, after Nate realizes that he’ll have to part with Uncle Beazley, he joins Joe Champigny on Loon Lake. Describing the afternoon as one of those “kind of slow, quiet days” (108), Nate kicks back against the gunwale and sadly informs Joe that Uncle Beazley is destined for Washington, DC. Though Joe encourages him to rebel, Nate ultimately accepts Uncle Beazley’s fate and promises to wait till “[he] can go to the museum and see Uncle Beazley again” (110).