Once More ?I have since become a salt-water man,? says White, commencing the journey through time, his son accompanying him. He continues to narrate in his essay of the journeys past and present, exploring the tangibility of time and the bonds of a father to his son. The work first appeared as a non-fiction narrative, not so much an essay. White implores vivid imagery, unique style, smooth structure, and presents ponder-worthy idea in his essay, Once More to the Lake.
Written in a reminiscent voice, the reflections of the past and comparison to the present are introduced early in the essay. ?I began to wonder how time would have marred this unique, holy spot,? father says. He immediately associates the lake to holiness, ?being careful never to rub my paddle against the gunwale for fear of disturbing the stillness of the cathedral.? Although throughout the continuation of the essay, White never stays reverential for too long.
An Essay concerning Humane Understanding in four b...
English: Cover of Harper's Monthly magazine in Feb...
English: Diagram from the essay "Printing" in "Art...His thoughts are filled with complex emotions, with the introduction of the illusion in paragraph five when he says, ?I began to sustain the illusion that he was I, and therefore, by simple transportation, that I was my father.? The development of the essay nearly revolves around this statement, posing the question, ?what is time?? An air of nostalgic relaxation permeates the introduction, leading the reader to perhaps originally dismiss White?s style as long-sentenced and plain as he begins, ?One summer, along about 1904, my father rented a camp on a lake in Maine and took us all there for the month of August. Not to be fooled though, the style is truly unique, implementing a style that is literary yet conversational. The reader?s senses are brought to life through this colorful description of the bedroom, which ?smelled of the lumber it...