The Deep End

The first two campsites that the Heffley family visits seem pleasant at first but turn out to bring nothing but more trouble and danger their way. When Greg’s mother insists on going tubing as a family, Greg notes the irony in how everyone seems to be in their own world anyway; his mother is on the phone, and his siblings are doing their own thing. Greg is thus made to be with his family but doesn’t seem to actually get quality time with anyone. He is often lost in the mix and forgotten about or left to fend for himself, such as when he gets lost in the woods or the moment that he is caught in the rapids and sent down river. His family is “totally useless in an emergency” (61) at helping him, and by the time the lifeguard arrives, Greg has lost his bathing suit and is too embarrassed to get out of the water. In these embarrassing moments, Greg’s family is nowhere to be found. At the isolated campsite, Greg’s dad and brother conspire to prank and scare Greg, playing off the Fear and Anxiety that they know rules Greg’s world. Ironically, the family is then met with a real scare when a bear appears at their camp moments later and are totally unprepared to handle it.

The isolation felt in the middle of the wilderness makes everyone uneasy, but it is followed by an entirely different type of confinement when the Heffleys reach Campers’ Eden. The family is packed in between other campers and has almost no space, and Greg can hear others snoring at night: “Those economy campsites were packed together TIGHT” (114). No matter where they go, the Heffleys cannot seem to find a balance between adventure and relaxation. Greg’s Managing Expectations of living in a camper are dashed when he realizes he can hear everyone else use the bathroom just a few feet away and still has to sleep next to Rodrick. When the family is confronted by a skunk, Greg notes the uselessness of a big brain in that moment, and how he would prefer to have quills instead. He expresses a hint of jealousy in other animals’ amazing abilities, suggesting that Greg does not think much of himself or of people. At Campers’ Eden, Greg is both stereotyped by others for being lower income, and stereotypes others based on how they dress or look. It is a constant exchange that is made, largely internally, but that comes back to haunt Greg when he is later caught in a lightning storm and nobody wants to help him.

Greg’s diary is more than just a diary; it also acts as a learning tool both in terms of understanding vocabulary through visual and linguistic context, and in the way that survival and camping tips are doled out to the reader at opportune moments. The reader learns how to prevent bear attacks, how to survive being taken down the rapids, and how to get rid of a skunk smell, among other things. Along with these helpful tips, Greg often capitalizes words he hopes to emphasize. This draws the reader’s attention to these words and encourages readers to consider them more deeply: “Some of the rows had THEMES, and people went kind of crazy with the decorations” (102).