Illusion of Mastery is one of the techniques the writer used in the novel

The boys, especially the Littluns, feel a sense of power over nature. This is, however, an illusion. Nature wields a might that the boys cannot comprehend. Still, there is the feeling that the boys feel a power over smaller creatures and natural elements,

"He became absorbed beyond mere happiness as he felt himself exercising control over living things.Home He talked to them, urging them, ordering them. Driven back by the tide, his footprints became bays in which they were trapped and gave him the illusion of mastery."