A vast range of literary techniques is employed in the text, all of which contribute to exploring the negative outcome of journeys. Imagery is a predominant throughout the entire text, appealing to the auditory, olfactory, tactile and visual senses. This is highly effective in depicting the wild beauty and the horror of nature. Quotes such as “…the clouds brewing above and the dirt swirling around his feet” and “skyline rushing down to drown his brittle form” conjure up images of the uncontrollable force of nature and the insignificance of humans in comparison. Fudge also encompasses more harsh imagery to further reinforce the harshness of life. This is evident in the quotes, “…spluttered mucus and blood” and “…covered in crusted blood, jaws ripped from his skull”. All these descriptions are then directly linked to nature’s ferocity. Fudge has characterised “The Land” as nature’s representation in the text. He emphasises and reinforces The Land by encompassing heavy use of personification. “the Land was speaking”, “the Land throbbing” and “the Land had suffocated his family” all use personification. The repeated use of ‘the’ before the subject, ‘Land’, combined with the effect of personification, emphasises and reinforces the authority and dominance of nature.
While imagery is prevalent in the text, Fudge also employs the use of other literary techniques such as oxymoron and personification. Depicting Nature as “horribly beautiful” and letting it let out a “roar of silence” are all contradictory. This contradiction is a parallel of the nature, The Land, in the text, revealing that nature is unpredictable.