Looking for Alaska: 4. One Hundred Twenty-Six Days Before Summary & Analysis

Miles attends his first class at Culver Creek and is surprised to find that all of the girls wear pajamas to class. He is overwhelmed by Madame O’Malley’s French class and worries that his school in Florida didn’t prepare him for Culver Creek. Alaska ignores him, and Miles feels conflicted about his feelings toward her. She is smart and beautiful, but she seems to have a mean streak. For the rest of the day he is stressed by how smart the other students and teachers seem, and he struggles to find his way on campus.

Later that day Miles attends World Religion class. The teacher, whom the students call the Old Man, announces that the class will be dedicated to the exploration of “the most important pursuit in history: the search for meaning.” This phrase makes Miles think of Alaska’s labyrinth. Miles likes the Old Man and looks forward to being taught and lectured to rather than having to have class discussions. During class, the Colonel figures out that the other person who threw Miles into the lake was Longwell Chase, a Weekday Warrior who is friends with the Colonel’s girlfriend, Sara. Alaska complains to Miles about the Old Man, whose real name is Dr. Hyde, but Miles tells her that the Old Man is a “genius.”