The Lake and Drowned Body

The lake and the drowned body serve as powerful symbols of forgotten tragedies, historical weight, and the invisibility of suffering. The body, which remains submerged and unseen, mirrors the fate of countless refugees who perish in their journeys across the Mediterranean, their deaths often unnoticed by the world. Just as the lake quietly holds the decomposing body beneath its surface, European societies suppress or overlook the suffering of displaced people, allowing their struggles to fade into the depths of bureaucratic indifference. For Richard, the lake also represents a site of introspection, as he grapples with his own past, Germany’s historical responsibility, and the evolving crisis around him. Its stillness contrasts with the turbulent lives of the refugees, reinforcing the disconnect between stable, privileged existence and the precarious reality of those seeking asylum. Through this imagery, Erpenbeck highlights the danger of willful...