Point of View

“Sea Church” is told from the first-person perspective of a speaker who views the sea as a rich source of spiritual nourishment. The speaker makes a series of firm requests that clarify her desire for deeper connections to others, herself, and her surroundings. For example, in the first quintain, the speaker requests to be given a church made from the raw materials of the sea. In other words, she asks for the space and structure to commune with the divine in nature. She also asks to be marked by this experience via a new freckle, and for her mother to be there to embrace her (Stanza 2). This desire for connection turns inward when the speaker asks to be hidden in a windowless room, which can be understood as her inner sanctuary. Despite her tendency toward a rich private inner life, the speaker turns her attention...