The Motif of Water

Hawkins uses water and the river as a recurring motif throughout Into the Water to help shape the story stylistically while also adding to the suspense and drama. Throughout the novel the river runs through the story as a current, ebbing and flowing and reminding the reader of its presence. Hawkins even uses watery or aqueous adjectives and metaphors. For instance when characters feel guilty Hawkins writes “guilt seeped through, a trickle at first and then a flood” (128) or “the tide of guilt rose and rose” (129). When various characters seek relief they describe needing to swim, or to take baths or showers. When Nel describes her sister she compares her to “the water itself” (37).

Water serves as an important part of the setting as well. In the beginning when Jules drives back to the town, she describes her childhood playing in the river...