The Light on the Sea

 John Wickham's "The Light on the Sea" is filled with imagery and other literary techniques that makes this story a very interesting read. For our main character, his life had no 'Light' and he went to go find where that light would be. It was not in his work at home and it did not come to the artist through his work. He sets out for sea and this ominous Caribbean tone of loneliness sets out throughout the story. The waves represent peace and solitude. He then is asked how he is spending his time and what he is looking at, and he replies, "‘I look at the sea,’ he said, so solemnly I thought he was making fun of the question.  But he wasn’t”. He just looks at the sea and it is his sense of peace and many others do not understand this idea. 

In addition, the sea also plays a key role in the timeframe of his life. He is later on in his life, and now the sea is almost an escape for Mr. Farley. He is able to escape his life previously by leaving his previous possessions behind, and he can now focuses on what brings him a sense of peace. So often those who find life tough especially with non-lucrative jobs, or with jobs that deal with criticism, struggle with their sense of self later in their life. He most likely became so obsessed with finding satisfaction that he completely missed the idea of finding his inner peace.