logo

59 pages 1 hour read

The English Patient

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1992

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Symbols & Motifs

Water

Despite the predominance of desert imagery, the novel uses water imagery for a number of symbolic purposes. It often denotes healing, nourishment, and the completion of rituals. As he remembers his rescue by the Bedouins, for example, Almásy recalls the role of water: “He could smell the oasis before he saw it. The liquid in the air” (6). Like the Bedouins, Hana uses water to try and heal, or at least soothe, Almásy’s burns: “Every four days she washes his black body, beginning with his destroyed feet. She wets a washcloth and holding it above his ankles squeezes water onto him, looking up as he murmurs, seeing his smile” (3). Kip also treats bathing as a symbolic act of purification, frequently washing his long hair and beard with a basin of rainwater “placed formally on top of a sundial” (72).

However, water also has associations with death and grief, particularly in its relationship to Katharine. Katharine, the novel says, was “always happier in rain, in bathrooms steaming with liquid air, in sleepy wetness” (170). This love for water becomes sadly ironic after she is left to die in the Cave of Swimmers. Almásy’s inability to return to the cave to save her mirrors his inability to find the oasis of Zerzura.

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
Unlock IconUnlock all 59 pages of this Study Guide

Plus, gain access to 8,650+ more expert-written Study Guides.

Including features:

+ Mobile App
+ Printable PDF
+ Literary AI Tools