What do the novels The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Canterbury Tales and On The Road have in common? All of these great works of fiction employ the literary technique known as the journey motif. The journey that the characters of these stories take is in the outer world, although the real journey is within the mind and spirit of the characters. As they progress in their physical journeys, they also progress within their spiritual journeys. There is a direct correlation, and ideally, the timing of the interior journey should match that of the external journey.
In Discovery of an Eagle, Cosmo’s journey is a road trip that goes from the east coast to the west coast of United States. In the beginning of the novel, Cosmo has only dipped within the part of himself that is to awaken as the trip continues. By Texas, he is halfway to the other side of the country as well as being half-way fully awakened inside, and by Arizona, he has reached the point of no return. Getting to the other side of the country is a metaphor for him getting to the other side of himself, and that is why it is so important that he makes to the end of his journey.