Reem's Response: E.B. White’s “Once More to the Lake"

E.B. White’s “Once More to the Lake,” has got to be a classic example of great creative nonfiction. White blends his experience as a child at the lake with his family and his own experience as a father taking his son to that same lake years later. By making use of several literary devices , White adds a layer of meaning to his work that wouldn’t have been there if he had chosen to tell of his experiences without making use of the techniques employed. The lake allows for White, as both author and narrator, to discover an essential truth about life. Time is an illusion when one considers how the important things in life remain the same. The tension lies in the way he mentions that some things have changed, and at certain points, you wonder if he is going to conclude that things really do change over time, which makes it that much more story like. He also connects his past with the present and utilizes themes to represent that connection. There is also a kind of universality inherent in his writing and that relates back to the idea we discussed in class: that creative non-fiction is supposed to tell the truth, but also build on that truth in order to add a layer of complexity related to the author’s perception of what that experience means, or some truth that he or she finds in it. I really hope that I can manage to write something that will show how much I appreciate the things I noticed in White’s work.