The Larby came back today without Smithson. Her crew said that he was lost in the storm. I did not know Smithson well but his kids were a strange lot and his passing has had a strange effect on me. Will he dwell now forever in the sea? My parents said I was born near the sea. Maybe I'll have a similar end and maybe Smithson and I are brothers of a sort, lost cargo on the sea we love so well, both of us floating aimlessly but never far from one another.
– Sorren
I find Sorren’s reaction here to be a little strong, a little too ornate. By his own words he didn’t know him well. How then can he have such a strong reaction? This book is a diary. Did he attempt to fool himself? This cannot be the case. Perhaps Sorren merely uses such experiences in order to fix them in his mind and that he may more perfectly develop his private thoughts. If his faith in the Lord was but a little stronger he would not be pondering such trivial and naive sentiments, and would instead be praising the Lord for what he has thus already been given. As for myself . . .the Lord is my sea.
- M
I wish I could figure out what M is trying to do in his role as curator, if in fact he was ever even so employed. His annotations mostly serve to question the authority, or the integrity of Sorren. I cannot imagine such a purpose in such an educated man and that he should concern himself with an insignificant, if thoughtful man from the lower class. I know that my role as curator is to explain and try to understand the words of Sorren, but frankly, I am becoming even more fascinated with the character of M. For me, as a man living in the 21st century, the words of Sorren make complete sense to me and almost seem contemporary. This proves to me that through all the preceding centuries, the essential sympathies of the soul are passed on through new generations, and in all probability, are archetypal. This gives me hope.