An Ever-Fixed Mark: Eugene Field’s Short Story ‘The Mountain and the Sea’

Rainclouds form over Wild Mans Brother Range in Canterbury, New Zealand. Podzemnik/CC BY-SA 4.0

True love is hard to find, but in his short story “The Mountain and the Sea,” Eugene Field demonstrates that, when true love is found, it should be held forever. Moreover,  one must remain loyal in love, if one is to remain true, just as the mountain never lost his love for the sea.

Earth, Water, and Air

The mountain, sea, and air live together in their own undisturbed time. The mountain stands steadfast upon the earth, the sea lay at the mountain’s feet, and the air sings around the mountain with beautiful songs. Though the sea and air are both in love with the mountain, the mountain falls in love with the sea and rejects the air’s love.

After seeing that the sea is preferred by the mountain, the air grows angry and makes a promise, saying: “The mountain shall not wed the sea. ... Enjoy your triumph while you may, O slumberous sister; I will steal you from your haughty lover!” With this promise in mind, the air makes a plan to win the mountain’s heart from the sea.

From then on, the air takes the sea’s waters up into a cloud each day and carries it away from the mountain. Thus, day by day, the loving sea begins to recede farther and farther from the mountain’s feet.

The mountain calls to the sea, beckoning and pleading with it to return, but, when the sea calls back, the air prevents its message from reaching the mountain. The air then dances around the mountain saying, “She is false to thee.  ... She is going to another love far away.” But the mountain ignores the air’s chiding and continues to love the sea, even as she begins fading in the distance.

An Ever-Fixed Mark

Finally, a day arrives when the air’s envious plan succeeds so well that the mountain can no longer see the sea. The inconsolable mountain continues to cry out to the sea: “Come back, come back, O my beloved!” But the sea never responds. The mountain only hears the air chide, saying that the sea is false, while the air is true. Still, the mountain does not listen.

Years and ages pass, and the sorrowful mountain continues to think about the sea and long for its return. The mountain will never believe the sea to be false and continues to wait, patiently, longingly for its return.

Rainclouds form over Wild Mans Brother Range in Canterbury, New Zealand. Podzemnik/CC BY-SA 4.0

One day, a group of clouds gathers around the mountain’s head and begins to rain. The water that falls from these clouds seems familiar and comforting and the mountain wonders where they have come from.

Through this wonderful story, Field shows what true, loyal love looks like—it patiently waits and continues to love, no matter how hard the wind may howl. He shows that true love is what William Shakespeare writes about in “Sonnet 116”:

Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove. O no, it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken.

True love doesn’t heed the tempests, doesn’t change with changes, and it doesn’t move when removed. If it does heed tempests, change with changes, and move when removed, it isn’t true love.

True love doesn’t depart when the wind howls, but looks on, waiting and watching, even if it should take an eternity. Thus, true love can never be destroyed, for it is “an ever-fixed mark” like the stars in the sky.

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