Claire of the Sea Light

Perched high above the town of Ville Rose, the defunct lighthouse serves as an important symbol and a recurring motif which provides a different meaning to a number of characters.

One of the most important of these is Gaëlle, whose grandfather helped to build the lighthouse. To her, it is a metaphor for her broken family, one she has tried for years to restore. After losing her husband and daughter (thus ending her ancestral lineage), her family will crumble into uselessness just like the lighthouse. In her darkest moments, she wonders whether she should fund the lighthouse’s repair, but is quick to dismiss this thought, wondering “how do you even choose what to mend when so much has already been destroyed?” (98). Like the lighthouse, Gaëlle’s life has been destroyed beyond repair.

For the fishermen of the town, the lighthouse has another meaning. The lighthouse no longer guides people to the shore, however, as the lights of the town are more than powerful enough to provide a point of reference for distant sailors. Rather, the lighthouse is only used in times of emergency (or when kids wish to mess around). When a sailor goes missing, perhaps because they have capsized at sea, people ascend the lighthouse and cast torch beams out into the water.