The short story Sea Story is written by A.S. Byatt in 2013. It is a story about the young Harold, who has a very significant relation to the nature especially to the sea. He falls in love with the beautiful woman Laura, but he does not reveal his love to her. Laura is leaving to study abroad and Harold is having a hard time without her, so he writes her a love letter in a bottle message, but the bottle does not get to the intended destination without being broken by the sea.
In this essay I will focus on the writer’s use of literary quotations, and which connection it has to the main character. Furthermore I will focus on the role of the nature in the short story and also a characterization of the main character.
The story mostly takes place near Harold’s home in Filey, and also at a pub nearby where he socializes with Laura and her friends. Part of the story takes place at Oxford where Harold studies.
The story is written from a third-person narrator, who is limited omniscient, which means that the narrator can only see into the thoughts of the main character. The effect of the story depends on which point of view is chosen, and we only see the story from Harold’s point of view, which makes Laura’s decision about leaving seem cruel. The style of the story is influenced by a lot of adjectives and imagery. The nature is for instance described with many details like a fishing town with a perfect sweep of pale golden beach, crumbling grassy cliffs and the unique Filey Brigg (page 1, line 3-4). The detailed descriptions also make the sentences long with many clauses.
The main character’s name is Harold, and he is probably in his early twenties when the story takes place. He is born into a family, who appreciates the nature and especially the sea. His father is an oceanographer and his mother is an English teacher at a high school. Furthermore his mother writes poems about water and waves, and she is absorbed with the sea. She likes to be alone by