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Once More to the Lake

Summary

Once More to the Lake is a personal essay where the lake serves as a setting for both

White’s present and past. Earlier on, the author reflects on his childhood at a period when he

would be taken to the lake by his father. He goes further into illustrating he was also taking his

son to the lake where he would go with his father. Throughout the entire essay, White presents a

dual experience he encounters while spending time at the lake with his son. The dual existence is

presented whenever White encounters a hard time differentiating himself from his son. To some

extent, White gets lost to the suffering, setting an identity crisis. For example, white remembers

going to the camp by a train when he was a child and the happiness he felt from unloading. With

the son, all he was required to do was to drive his vehicle up to the camp and to unpack his

vehicle upon arrival, a quit different experience as to that with his dad. Also, the noises that

appeared quieting appeared jarring now. White applies the camping experiences with his son as a

stepping stone of his memories. However, his happier times are at odds with his present

experience as an adult. The essay shifts in a non-linear manner as White moves in and out of the

present and past while following the flow within his mental process. White achieves a full circle

by the end of the essay as he comes to accept his mortality. He stops seeing himself within his
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son’s image as it becomes clear to him that the son’s maturation signifies that he is getting old

and closer to his death.

Critical analysis

First, White decides to revisit the lake after so many years have passed since the

experiences of being at the lake brings back his childhood memories. because his perceptions are

getting switched from an adult to a boy, it is evident that his real experience at the lake as an

adult is determined by the switching perceptions. Therefore, there are chances that the real late

he is revisiting is already changed but his youthful perceptions have not changed hence making

the lake to be virtually unchanged. Moreover, the technology he is referring to the illustration of

nosier and new engines may also be impacted by the changes within his perceptions. Maybe the

new boats are not that destructive but he was however used to the less noisy and old boats

thereby making unreal and more personal claims.

White compares and contrasts the current technology to the technology that existed

within his childhood. Despite the lake not changing, the essay illustrates changes in other things

rather than the lake. For instance, when White goes to the Lakefront, despite wishing to enjoy the

experience and scene of being in the lake again, White is bothered with the noise produced by

the new boats found on the lake. With the new boats, White illustrates that technology can be

destructive. Despite technology making things more efficient and faster, it can also make things

more disruptive and nosier. Therefore, White emphasizes the negative impacts of new

technology. in the course of the essay, it is indicated that White has a preference for old

technologies and engines. This was an interest he developed from childhood. from his first views

of technology, it is identified to be destructive hence generating an emphasis on White's

perception factor. White had a negative perception on the new engine and hence he was affected
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by the noise they produced simply because he expected and wanted to see boats having old

engines similar to the ones he saw during his childhood.

Thirdly, there is an aspect of internal conflict within the essay. White refuses to accept

that he is a father and not a child hence illustrating conflict of man against himself since the

speaker is experiencing internal conflict. Internal character involves the interior mind of the main

character, his hang-ups and the various neurotic dilemmas. The major conflict white is

experiencing is that he yearning to get back into his past while relieving his adolescence.

Moreover, the film provides sensory details that incorporate the five senses allowing the

audience to hear sounds from mandolins, the girls singing have a taste of sugar dipped doughnuts

and see the sailing moonlights. The experiences effectively relieve the periods of his youth when

he started thinking of girls. Time has preserved the lake to an extent that it remains constant to

the memories he holds on his youthful ages. According to White, the time has preserved the lake

into being exactly what he bears in his mind. To some extent, White is experiencing a mid-life

crisis and the crisis is resolved at the end of the essay. While time has maintained White's lake,

what he refers to "Holy Spot", there are moments which force him to acknowledge that time has

passed. White perceives the moment as an interruption of his nostalgia. The interruption is

presented at the moment when he compares the boats at his childhood from the modern boats.

Personal response

In conclusion, the lake is used to signify physical spaces within an individual's

development. For instance, according to the essay, the lake presents a set of familial interactions

mostly within White's past. Moreover, the lake presents a venue for reflection. the author

frequently goes back to the lake as it enhances his reflection on development and change. The

lake helps White think back hence developing a better understanding of his current situation.
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Therefore, the essay supports the thinking of the relevance of permanence in a person's life.

Despite the lake has changed in so many years, it is still a place where the author can feel

comfortable to visit. All through the essay, the lake reminds the author of his childhood

experiences. Therefore, the lake brings light on the importance of having some degree or form of

permanence in an individual's life. Such permanence is relevant towards anchoring individuals

and their psychological development.

There are things which do not change but many things change with the underlying

principles stating that nothing is constant in this world. However, the things which do not change

include the individual's feelings and thoughts towards others and the longing to have a particular

thing. Perhaps, White illustrates that the lake has not changed but this may not be real but rather

his perceptions. The lake might have already changed by the time he gets to the lakefront as a

grown man but his perception and experiences regarding the lake are constant. Still, White

enjoys what he feels and sees.

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Works Cited

White, E. B. "Once more to the lake." published in Harper's magazine in (1941).