OPEN WATER QUOTES

Protagonist: Nelson’s second-person narration creates an uncomfortable intimacy that reflects the protagonist's fragmented life

Quote: “Sometimes you forget to be you is to be a Black body, and not much else.”

Protagonist: The protagonist’s internal monologue serves as a representation of his fear of expressing himself.

Quote: "it’s easier for you to hide in your own darkness, than emerge cloaked in your own vulnerability." / “You have always thought if you opened your mouth in open water you would drown, but if you didn't open your mouth you would suffocate.”

Protagonist: Another way the protagonist is represented is through the effect of being viewed solely as a "Black body" rather than a person.

Quote: “they confirm what you already know: that your bodies are not your own."

Desire and Love: Nelson presents desire as a longing to be seen beyond stereotypes.

Quote: "It's one thing to be looked at, and another to be seen" / “You ache. You ache all over. You are aching to be you,”

Desire and Love: Desire is also depicted as the protagonist’s struggle to express himself.

Quote: “There’s so much more you wish to say but there aren't the words,” / "Language fails us"

Desire and Love: Finally, Nelson conveys desire as a conflict between being shrouded in the safety of your mind

Quote: "it’s easier for you to hide in your own darkness, than emerge cloaked in your own vulnerability."

Prejudice: Nelson presents prejudice as an external force that replaces his identity with a societal stereotype.

Quote: "You are a threat before you are a human. You are a black body before you are a man."

Prejudice: Prejudice is also presented as a violation that robs the protagonist of his sense of safety and autonomy.

Quote: "Your body is not your own."

Prejudice: Finally, prejudice is presented as the exhaustion of being "watched" without ever being understood.

Quote: "It's one thing to be looked at, and another to be seen"