Anita Miettunen June 15, 2017 (1627 words)
A Close Analysis of The Lion and the Bird The Lion and the Bird (Enchanted Lion Books, 2014), which was first published in French as Le lion et l'oiseau (2013, Les Éditions de la Pastèque), won the 2014 Governor General’s French language children’s literary award for illustration. Written and illustrated by Marianne Dubuc, this picture book is a moving story of friendship between a lion and a bird. Told in just 142 words but spanning 72 pages, it is primarily the book’s illustrations that create its emotional rhythm. Yet the author’s occasional sparse narrative and dialogue also deliver an essential story layer. The text and illustrations thus work together to produce an award-winning title. How was this achieved? Through a close analysis of The Lion and the Bird, I will discuss below how this book’s narrative, verbal, and visual systems contributed to its success. The Narrative System The Lion and the Bird is told through the point of view of the main character, Lion. He lives a quiet life alone until one autumn day, while working in his garden, migrating birds fly overhead and Lion discovers that one of the birds has fallen into his yard. This bird is injured and as the winds gust and the other birds fly away, Lion bandages up the little bird’s broken wing and carries him safely home in his mane. Lion welcomes the bird to share his home. Through daily activities such as mealtime, reading, brushing teeth, and sleeping, the two develop a bond. The seasons pass and they spend wintertime together, tobogganing, ice fishing and reading by a cozy fireplace until spring arrives and the bird’s migrating flock appears. Lion understands it is time to let go of the bird and although his loneliness is palpable, he carries on. Lion spends his summer
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gardening, reading and fishing. Then one autumn day, just as Lion feels he’ll never see his friend again, the little bird unexpectedly reappears to spend winter with him. This narrative touches on several themes including friendship, loneliness and loss, and acceptance in letting go of things you can’t change. The indoors and outdoors both play an important role and Dubuc varies the story’s pace and mood by setting her story in these different scenes. The illustrations evoke a sense of warmth and safety by showing a roaring fireplace and cozy blankets inside Lion’s rustic cottage. Outside, amidst a rural setting of a garden, lakes, and trees, there is a sense of space to fly, play, and be free. Open skies with migrating birds suggest departures and possibilities beyond the narrow confines of Lion’s world. Yet the narrative clearly grounds Lion as a character with an outward thinking perspective. Lion never insists that the bird stay with him, but rather he invites him to stay. Similarly, Lion never tries to hold back the little bird when the time comes to part. Lion understands there’s a natural cycle for a bird that he doesn’t control. By setting the story over the course of the changing seasons, Dubuc also imparts the sense of time passing in life. Lion is sad but with the passage of time, just as his garden continues to grow, Lion too continues with his daily routines. But there is a surprise: just as Lion feels he will never see his friend again, the bird returns to spend winter with him. This event concludes the narrative with a satisfying sense that a new rhythm has been established: Lion and the bird will once again share many months of friendship through the winter. The Verbal System The themes of friendship, loneliness and loss, and acceptance, along with Lion’s character, as discussed above in the narrative system of The Lion and the Bird are also conveyed through the 2
book’s verbal system. Through just 142 words, Dubuc uses text sparingly to support the narrative and compliment the visual system. Yet the text is also essential to give us a deeper understanding into the themes and Lion’s character. When he first discovers the injured bird, the text explains that “Lion can’t just leave him there.” Lion says, “Let’s bandage you up.” And: “That will help.” As he places the bird safely in his mane, he says, “Don’t worry! You won’t be cold here.” The syntax is simple and direct yet with just a few carefully chosen words, we understand deeply that Lion is compassionate, wise, and caring. We understand that Lion is never overbearing. He merely invites bird to stay with him: “You’re welcome to stay with me. There’s more than enough room for both of us.” These gentle words underscore how kind Lion is to a degree that illustrations alone could not show us. As well, when the bird points to the sky indicating his desire to return to his flock, just a few words explain Lion’s acceptance: “Yes,” says Lion. “I know.” We understand that Lion is an accepting soul. Dubuc uses a blend of narration and dialogue and with one exception, Lion is the only character who speaks. While this solidifies his point of view, it also adds another dimension to the book: we understand that a friendship can develop and thrive even when a shared language is not spoken aloud. Dubuc elects to have the bird emit a sound only once: a musical note glides across a blank white spread, announcing the arrival of the bird just as Lion has resigned himself to his lonesome state. This is a powerful effect that punctuates the story with new hope and joy. The Visual System While the text is important, it is ultimately Dubuc’s sensitive artwork that ties this story together. The illustrations in The Lion and the Bird are rendered in coloured pencil, water colours and mechanical pencil, using a blend of realism with a cartoon-style that pays close attention to
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details and textures. A soft, muted colour palette of greens, blues, golds and browns, capture the outdoor settings from spring through autumn. The sky tones are darker at night or when the flock of birds fly away and again lighter when Lion is happy in his garden. Dubuc also makes excellent use of white space and full spreads. For example, as winter arrives, a series of spreads show Lion’s cottage and yard gradually turn paler and paler until everything is coated in a blanket of snow; only Lion’s cottage is barely visible. But the softly toned water colours and images of steady smoke arising from Lion’s cottage convey a snug feeling even in the depth of winter. We know that the two friends are warm and safe inside. Similarly, the interior scenes are illustrated in light warm browns which give the setting a rustic and comforting feeling. Dubuc includes many textured details that add to the sense of a welcoming home including a glowing fireplace, a wooden rocking chair, blankets, braided rugs, knitted covers, books and fuzzy slippers. Furthermore, Dubuc uses many rounded shapes to convey gentleness and security. For example, Lion’s mane, where he tucks the little bird, is smooth and round, as are his cottage and its windows and stone fireplace, and the trees around his yard. Both Lion and the bird also have round, softly rouged cheeks which suggest their sweet dispositions. Compositionally, the illustrations vary between full colour spreads and spot illustrations and Dubuc uses different techniques to convey meaning. For example, she creates a sense of the changing seasons with a few leaves falling and sweeping lines across a spread to evoke autumn’s winds; an almost white spread, save for a pale cottage, indicates a snowy winter storm; and an all-white spread with a spot illustration of a pink flower popping out show us spring has arrived. The spot illustrations work in many ways. They show us a close up of the wounded bird (with the injury coloured with just the lightest hint of red so it is never menacing) and we sense its
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pain. They show us busy, active days when the pages are filled with many spot illustrations; but also sadder days of loss when all of Lion’s usual activities are harder with the absence of the bird. They also convey the deep emotions of loss when Lion has shrunk down in size and appears alone towards the bottom of a blank page, just after the bird has flown away. As mentioned previously, it is precisely at the moment when a single musical note shoots across a blank spread that we know there is a shift in the narrative; this simple illustration marks a turning point in the story and we can anticipate the bird’s happy return. Dubuc has chosen to close the last few pages of the story with a spot illustration of Lion smiling again as the bird happily nestles in his mane, followed by a wordless full page spread of Lion’s cottage, with smoke blowing out of the chimney, against a moonlit starry sky. While this may create a cozy ending, curiously, there is a final wordless double page spread that follows, which repeats a scene with a migrating flock of birds, in dark silhouette, against a dull blue-grey sky. This perhaps serves as a reminder that one day, there may again be loss. This final illustration, therefore, concludes the story on a realistic note. Summary This close analysis of The Lion and the Bird has touched on some of the elements of the narrative, verbal, and visual systems found in this book about friendship. These aspects have included an overview of the themes, setting and characters found in the book’s narrative system; the syntax choices of the verbal system; and some discussion of the media, style, and composition used in the visual system. Each system plays an important role and together, they work to deepen and elevate the story and meaning in this award-winning book. Reference: Dubuc, Marianne. The Lion and the Bird. New York: Enchanted Lion Books, 2014. Print. 5