Warriors: Into the Wild is the first novel by Erin Hunter in the Warriors series. It is in the fantasy genre and is similar to Tolkien's Lord of the Rings or J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series in that it combines fictional elements with real world, believable characters. For instance, Warriors: Into the Wild centers on a group of wild cats and at the heart of the story is a house cat named Rusty, who makes the transition from domestic animal to feral creature of the forest. This paper will describe the events of the first novel of this series by Hunter and show how it fits into the overall fantasy genre.The main character of Warriors: Into the Wild, is Rusty, a house cat with a strong heart and good leadership abilities that will propel him to the heart of the action in the novel. One day, Rusty is in his human's backyard when a stranger cat intrudes into the yard before going back into the woods. Rusty is intrigued and ventures into the woods to see what is going on. This shows that Rusty is like many other fantasy characters, who leave the safety of their homes to investigate the mysterious world just outside the gate.
In the woods, Rusty meets the wild cat named Graypaw, who intruded into Rusty's human's yard. He is of the Thunderclan. Graypaw is threatening, "What's a kittypet like you doing out in the woods?" (Hunter 14). Rusty and Graypaw argue and Rusty shows a lot of courage. The other wild cats watching are impressed by Rusty's courage and they...
Graypaw objects, "But kittypets can't be warriors!" he says, adding, "They don't have warrior blood!" (Hunter 21). Nonetheless, Bluestar and Lionheart, the older cats who are training Graypaw, who is a young cat, see something special in Rusty.
Rusty decides to think over the invitation to join the clan -- but ultimately he decides that he will. It is like his true nature is calling out to him to leave the safety and security of his domestic world and embark on the adventure that lies waiting outside the human's yard. In other words, he is going on a quest. The same thing happens in other works in the fantasy genre: Harry Potter leaves his ordinary home to join the wizards' academy. The hobbits leave the Shire to take part in the adventure of the ring in Lord of the Rings. Fantasy books are all about main characters leaving ordinary, everyday surroundings and taking part in an adventure that is larger than life. In these type of adventures, the main characters eventually have to prove themselves. This is exactly what happens in Warriors: Into the Wild. Rusty transforms from a house pet to a true warrior cat, helping to save other members of the clan and fight off the enemy clan throughout the course of the novel. Just as the title suggests, this is a story about a cat leaving the home to venture into the wild.
Rusty's transformation from house cat to…
