Prince of Tides

“We children sat transfixed before that moon our mother had called forth from the waters. When the moon had reached its deepest silver, my sister, Savannah, though only three, cried aloud to our mother, to Luke and me, to the river and the moon, ‘Oh, Mama, do it again!’ And I had my earliest memory.”

Lila imbues natural phenomena, such as the moonrise, with magic for her children. She times the moon's rising over clear waters with a flourish of her hand, installing in the children a deep sense of wonder and curiosity. Memories like this explain why Lila continues to fascinate Tom, despite her many flaws.

“My soul grazes like a lamb on the beauty of indrawn tides.”

Nature is revered by the Wingo siblings, especially the marshlands in which they grew up. For Tom, nature comes closest to a powerful deity. Here, he uses Christian imagery to reinforce that religiosity, the lamb being the symbol of Christ, purity, and the faithful. The mention of tides is evocative of the marsh country and the Wingo love for the sea. It also symbolizes Luke, the most powerful and tragic Wingo sibling, the Prince of Tides of the novel’s title.

“‘What was your family life like, Savannah?’ I asked, pretending I was conducting an interview.

‘Hiroshima,’ she whispered.

‘And what has life been like since you left the warm, abiding bosom of your nurturing, close-knit family?’

‘Nagasaki,’ she said, a bitter smile on her face.”

Tom pretends to be an interviewer when visiting Savannah in an institute after her second suicide attempt. As the exchange shows, both Tom and Savannah cope with their trauma through dark humor. The references to Hiroshima and Nagasaki also represent Tom and Savannah’s horror about the nuclear arms race, a prominent concern in the text. Since this conversation occurs early in the novel, it adds to the suspense around the dark childhood of the Wingos.