What narrative function does the beach scene serve in the story? Does it seem out of place? Why?

Why does the narrator refuse to stay with her dying friend? What roles do motivation and plot play in the reader's understanding of the narrator's reluctance?

How does the detail about earthquakes and fear of earthquakes relate to the central concern of the story?

How does the vignette about the chimpanzee serve as a metaphor for the story as a whole?