Peak stencils a blue mountain tag on the skyscraper just before he is arrested. He refers to the compulsion to tag as a bit of mystery and implies that the world does not have enough mystery in it. Though Peak may not be aware of the impulse that leads him to tag the skyscrapers, the tag symbolizes his aspirations to be a world-class climber and reconnect with his father, as well as his feeling of loss at having to move to New York and leave his old life behind. It is therefore key to themes of both Passion Versus Obsession and Fatherhood’s Meaning.

Peak’s practice of tagging the skyscrapers he climbs is emblematic of a climber placing their flag on a mountaintop, a completely acceptable act in climbing culture. In an urban context, however, it is antiauthoritarian: Peak wants a life he cannot have, and in trying to create a life that includes extreme climbing, he breaks the law and becomes indirectly responsible for another young person’s death.

In a broader sense, the tag symbolizes the urge that anyone can feel to make a mark on the world, to prove that they were here.