Deer Crossings in Big Woods in "The Bear" (Location)

Located near de Spain’s hunting camp, this "faint crossing" (282) is a deer trail, a path the animals themselves have made through the woods. In "The Old People," such the trail intersects the ridge trail - a path made by men. Such crossings are good places for hunters to wait for game. In "The Bear," the crossing assumes special importance as the site in which Sam Fathers teaches the unnamed boy to handle his gun and where they first encounter Old Ben, the bear, slowly moving northward. While Faulkner does not provide much information as to its precise whereabouts in "The Bear," it is close to camp and an important artery of the hunting grounds, since the boy expresses surprise that the bear would ever wander so close to people, to which Sam responds that the bear "do it every year . . . Maybe to see who in camp this time" (283).