Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Past the Shallows, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Brotherhood, Loyalty, and Hardship
Addiction and Abuse
Tragedy and Blame
Father Figures and Responsibility
The Duality of Nature
Summary
Analysis
Miles enters into a state of total delirium as he floats alone in the water. He perceives himself to be suspended in an orange light that will soon dissipate into darkness. Miles feels that he has “been drifting for a lifetime” as Harry and the rest of his material life dissolve into the vastness of the deep water. He senses himself becoming incorporated into the ocean and can no longer perceive the boundary between his consciousness and his surroundings. Miles stops resisting the waves, feeling ready to succumb to drowning as he sinks away from light and air.
Throughout the story, Miles has struggled between a phobia of deep water and a beloved pastime of surfing. This passage marks the end of his polarized relationship with the water, as he is forced to surrender himself into a passive state, wherein he is unable to fear or love the water. Rather, he is only able to recognize its immense, all-encompassing presence. In this moment, Miles feels that he has been integrated with the ocean as opposed to fighting against it.
Themes
