The Devil and the Dark Water

“[Haan’s] proposal had been thorough, listing the benefits of their union to her father. In short, she’d have a beautiful cage and all the time in the world to admire herself in the bars. […] She’d felt betrayed, but she’d been young. She understood the world better now. Meat didn’t get a say on whose hook it hung from.”

This depiction of Sara’s marriage exemplifies the theme of Gender and Class Inequality. As a woman, Sara had no say in her marriage and was instead given to the man who had the most to offer to her family. She is metaphorically compared to both a bird and butchered meat—both stuck and neither capable of influencing their situations.

“Ferries swarmed the Saardam, crossing the water in a long chain, like ants attacking a dead ox.”

The first time the ship is seen, Turton uses a simile to compare the Saardam to a dead ox. This foreshadowing shows the doom that is headed for the ship and its passengers.

“[Crauwels’s] jacket was folded neatly over the back of a nearby chair, revealing a crisp cotton shirt, clean enough to suggest it was new from the tailor that day. As with the rest of his attire, it was expensive. Arent couldn’t make sense of it. Sailing was dirty work. […] Why waste coin on finery when it wouldn’t survive the voyage?”

This foreshadowing shows the truth of Crauwels early: His appearance reflects his obsession with wealth, foreshadowing his involvement in the Old Tom mystery as a means to become wealthy. Additionally, this quote shows Arent’s intelligence. Despite his constant self-criticism and insistence that he cannot match Sammy’s deductive skills, Arent notices Crauwels’s incongruous attire, which would have been a clue to his involvement had Arent followed through on it.

“Good. Keep it that way, even from Creesjie Jens when you meet her. She’s a fine woman, but still a woman. She’d believe the worst.”

Ironically, Haan insists that Arent can confide in Creesjie and trust her. However, he immediately turns around and tells Arent to keep his past a secret from her, simply because she is a “woman.” This quote reflects the theme of Gender and Class Inequality. Despite Creesjie’s involvement with Old Tom for several years, he still does not believe in her ability to reason or think critically about Arent’s past.

“As a child, [Lia] had pretended [their home in Batavia] was Daedalus’s labyrinth, spending hours fleeing the Minotaur in the maze. Her father had filled the monster’s role nicely.”

This allusion is a reference to the Greek myth of Daedalus. In the myth, Daedalus builds a labyrinth for King Minos to trap the Minotaur, a mythical monster with the head of a bull and the body of a man. This allusion shows how trapped Lia and Sara felt in their home in Batavia—“fleeing” Haan. Additionally, in some accounts of the myth, Daedalus—a skilled inventor and architect—gets trapped overlooking the labyrinth. Like Daedalus, Lia is a brilliant inventor who becomes trapped alongside her greatest invention, the Folly.

“One by one, the other ships in the fleet followed suit until seven flames burned in the endless dark, like fallen stars adrift in the ocean.”

This simile, which compares the ships in the fleet to fallen stars, is an example of foreshadowing. It hints toward the destruction of the fleet and the lives lost by comparing it to stars that have been destroyed.

“[Lia] was peppering [Crauwels] with seafaring questions. Initially, Sara had worried that her daughter was letting her cleverness slip. She often did when she was excited, but Lia was wearing her best disguise—the vacuous expression of a dim noblewoman trying to impress a suitor.”

These thoughts from Sara convey the theme of Gender and Class Inequality as they show the dangers that Lia faces, as a woman, just by being herself. However, they also speak to Lia’s true intelligence: she recognizes her status as a noblewoman and successfully hides her intelligence behind a “vacuous expression,” while still getting the answers that she wants.

“‘Of course you can.’ Creesjie adopted a pompous tone. ‘As the highest-ranking noble here, you can do what you wish. Besides, Jan is in bed, so it doesn’t really matter.’”

This quote conveys the contrasting worldviews between Creesjie and Sara. While Sara sees her noble status as a hindrance, as she must uphold the strict behavioral rules that come with being a noblewoman, Creesjie sees it as a tool she can use to do as she pleases. It also shows the ignorance of Creesjie as exemplified by the use of the word “pompous.” Creesjie truly does not understand their differences, as Sara faces the risk of abuse from her husband if she simply does what she wishes.

“Arent peered at Drecht, then over his shoulder at Sara. He smiled with genuine pleasure. She mirrored it, surprised by how pleased she was to see him.”

This quote foreshadows the eventual relationship between Arent and Sara. For the first time in both their lives, they are falling in love, a thought that “surprises” Sara initially but one that she will embrace as she changes in the novel and pursues her own desires.

“We’re mice to them, to be played with and ripped apart. That mark on the sail is how it starts. It’s meant to scare us, because scared people will do anything to stop being scared, and they’ll do it to almost anybody else.”

When asked if she believes in demons, Sara argues that the point is irrelevant: No matter who put the mark there, it is fulfilling its purpose by scaring the crew. Her thoughts convey the theme of The Blurred Line Between Good and Evil. She argues that everyone is capable of evil, and one of the things that most easily brings it out of them is fear.

“‘What we discover,’ corrected Arent. He has some questions he wants us to find answers to.’ ‘Us?’ [Sara] said, surprised. Arent became flustered. ‘Sorry, I assumed you want to…’ He trailed off uncertainly. ‘I do,’ she interjected quickly, […] ‘Nobody’s trusted me with anything more pressing than small talk for a very long time.’”

This conversation between Arent and Sara first shows their differences in status. As a man, Arent can pursue the mystery with little worry about how his actions are perceived; conversely, Sara must be careful how she acts as a noblewoman. Additionally, it shows the theme of Gender and Class Inequality as Sara is surprised that, for once, someone actually desires her input.

“Strong is strong and weak is weak, and it doesn’t matter if you wear breeches or skirts if you’re the latter. Life will hammer you flat.”

These words from Arent exemplify the theme of Gender and Class Inequality: Haan sees Sara’s inner strength and wants her input, whether she is a woman or not. Because these thoughts are so rare at this time, Arent’s ability to see strength and intelligence regardless of gender is one of the things that grows the relationship between Sara and him.

“Sara turned her body back toward the staircase. She was trained to obey. Her entire life she’d been told what to do, and she’d done it. It was part of her conditioning, and yet for some reason, the thought of [Arent] going alone felt wrong.”

This moment marks a change for Sara as a character. For the first time, she goes against what she has been “trained” to do. Instead of returning to her cabin and avoiding danger, she chooses to follow Arent, putting aside her status to help him.

“There’s no glory except what the minstrels make up so the nobles can feel good about the slaughter they paid for. A soldier’s job is to end up dead far from home, fighting for a king who wouldn’t give them the crumbs from his table.”

Arent’s thoughts convey the theme of Gender and Class Inequality. Even though he fought in the war and gained fame and money from it, he still recognizes the inequality that exists in wars fought for the pursuit of power and wealth. With no need to fear for their own safety, the noble class is willing to sacrifice soldiers for their benefit.

“Freedom. She almost said it out loud. She almost shouted it. She wanted to go where she desired without being told she couldn’t. She wanted to decide each day how to live it. She wanted to pursue her talents without judgment and be the mother she wished to be, rather than the mother she had to be.”

As Sara is tempted by Old Tom’s whispers, she acknowledges that which she wants most: To be free from the confines of her noble status. Her temptation and the fact that she nearly gives in to it exemplifies the theme of The Blurred Line Between Good and Evil, as there is a part of her evil enough to give in to a demon to get what she desires.

“By the crew’s reckoning, there was only them and us. Passengers and crew. Rich and poor. Officers and common sailors.”

These thoughts from Arent convey the theme of Gender and Class Inequality, while also conveying his intelligence and highlighting Haan’s ignorance. While Haan unapologetically whips the constable and threatens to whip a new crewmember each day, Arent is able to see the impact that his actions have, as it furthers the divide between the working sailors and the noblemen.

“I don’t believe women can be free, not while men are stronger. What use is the freedom to be assaulted in the first dark alley we come across? We can’t fight, so we sing, we dance, and we survive. […] If I cast off that protection for some imaginary freedom, what will become of [my sons]? […] Marriage is the price I must pay for the privilege of nobility, and I consider the price well spent.”

While most of the novel stresses the restrictions that Sara faces and her desire to be free from them, these words from Creesjie to Lia complicate the situation for noblewomen. Unlike Sara, Creesjie appreciates her position in society. She believes that she would not be strong enough to survive on her own and is grateful for the money and the protection that her marriage grants her. Although she does not suffer the same consequences that Sara does from her marriage, she wants to make it clear to Lia that not all marriages are miserable.

“The door creaked open into gloom, revealing a figure seated in the corner. Its face was hidden behind a bloom of candlelight, but as Haan entered the cabin, it pushed the candle away with a long finger, revealing itself.”

Turton uses the third-person point of view at several points in the novel to build suspense and leave the reader in the dark about certain events. This is one example, where Haan has figured out that Sammy is Old Tom and that he is in Dalvhain’s cabin. Instead of revealing this to the reader, Turton keeps the suspense building until the novel’s conclusion.

“For most, the temptation was overwhelming. Safe passage for somebody else’s blood was too fine a deal to pass up, certainly better than they’d received from the Company.”

Turton’s description of the sailors giving in to Old Tom conveys the symbolism of Old Tom as a representation of evil by comparing it to the Company. While both have little regard for human life, at least Old Tom can offer them safety in return for their help, while the Company is willing to sacrifice them in exchange for profit.

“[Sara] felt nothing. Not even jubilation. There was something pitiful about it all, she realized. In death, without that aura of power cloaking him, he was exposed as a thin, frail, old man. All his wealth, all his influence, all his scheming and cruelty. They’d all been for nothing.”

Sara’s thoughts after the death of her husband show the futility of wealth and power. While Haan may have believed his wealth made him bigger and more important than other people, death reveals that he is no different from anyone else. With these thoughts, Sara also receives freedom—not only from her husband in his death but also in her own acknowledgment that there are things more important than her status.

“’When did we start letting women into these meetings?’ demanded van Schooten, freshly outraged as he realized Sara, Lia, and Creesjie had taken chairs at opposite ends of the table from Crauwels. ‘This isn’t women’s business.’”

Even as the ship is destroyed by the storm, their course is lost, sailors turn to Old Tom, and murders are committed, van Schooten still clings to his misogynist beliefs. He objects to the presence of Sara, Lia, and Creesjie even though they are the ones effectively working to save the ship. This irony conveys the theme of Gender and Class Inequality, as he is unwilling to accept their input even after all they have done.

“We’ve all taken coin for things we ain’t proud of, but that’s the Company, ain’t it? They ask too much for too little. Them nobles in there are getting richer all the time off the back of our labor, and I’m sick of it.”

While this quote shows the Company’s indifference to the sailors’ lives, it is also an example of irony. Crauwels makes a speech to his crew about how corrupt the Company is and how fixated on wealth the nobles are, yet in reality, he is not interested in the sailor’s equality. Rather, as later revealed, he is only starting the mutiny for his own greed—to get more of the wealth out of the Old Tom scheme.

“Wood shrieked, and the deck exploded, a spear rock shooting upward, toppling the mainmast and pulverizing everybody in its path. Diamonds flew into the air, gold chains and chalices raining down around them.”

Ironically, as the ship is destroyed, the treasure hidden within it explodes and much is lost in the ocean. Central to the novel is the pursuit of wealth, yet, as the ship sinks, the futility of all that treasure is seen as it is uselessly thrown into the air and sinks into the sea.