Summary Of Once More To The Lake By E. B White

E.B. White’s essay, “Once More to the Lake” is a story about how the narrator, who grew up going to a lake in Maine, returns with his son when he is older. He describes all the great memories that were made with his family at this lake, specifically mentioning the times with his father. When he arrives back to the lake, he comments on how everything has stayed the same.
However, everything he describes appears to have changed from when he was a child. The narrator mentions a series of things that occur at the lake that he says are the same, but are actually not. For instance, when he mentions the pathway they walk on to get to the farmhouse. Yes, the pathway was still there, however instead of three tracks on the pathway, there was now only two; the tracks created from the horse and carriage were no longer in existence. This shows the change of time that has occurred between the last time he was at the lake. Along with the motorboats, which had a quiet hum back in the day, now were loud and disturbed the peace that the narrator previously enjoyed. Even when he returns to …show more content…
Readers see that White keeps comparing himself to his son, seeing himself as him and him as his grandfather. While fishing with his son, just like White did with his father, he says “I looked at the boy, who was silently watching his fly, and it was my hands that held his rod, my eyes watching. I felt dizzy and didn’t know which rod I was at the end of.” He kept seeing his son as himself. The narrator may have been feeling nostalgic during this trip to the lake, remembering his childhood with his late father. Readers can gather that White as an adult, is reflecting back on his life. When his son put on his cold, wet swimming trunks and jumps into the lake, the narrator realizes he’s getting old because he knows he doesn’t have the spirit in him to do that