by Heather Howell

When I read A River Runs Through It the quote that stood out the most to me was Maclean’s last line, “I am haunted by waters.” This quote was significant to me because Norman and his family all loved fishing so much, but after Norman lost his family the waters were a constant reminder to him of memories. Throughout the book Norman Maclean emphasizes on his relationships with his family - particularly his brother Paul.

Norman has a unique relationship with his brother Paul. Paul and Norman love each other deeply, but express it in different ways. Norman shows his love for Paul by always trying to help him and guide him to live a better life. When Paul runs into trouble with with the law or his finances, Norman supports him and lets Paul know he is there for him. After Paul got into the fight and ended up in jail, Norman came to help him and take him home. Paul showed his love for Norman in the book after he thought Norman and Jessie were having problems and he took Norman to go fishing with his father and him. While neither of the brothers are upfront in telling the other that they love them, they both prove it continuously through their actions.

The relationship between Jessie and Norman was somewhat complicated. Jessie and Norman both loved each other immensely and had a very deep relationship. Along with their everlasting love for one another, they also shared a common problem they each were trying to solve. Jessie was trying to help her brother Neal live a better life, just as Norman was trying to help Paul. They both understood what the other was dealing with and tried to be supportive of the situation. Jessie and Norman not only proclaimed their love aloud to each other, but showed it through supporting and caring for one another.

Norman seemed to admire Paul’s skill in fly-fishing. Before Paul dies he is nearing perfection as a fly-fisherman, and Norman seems to strive towards being as good as Paul at it. While Norman has everything else in his life going for him by being happily married with a job, the one thing Paul has that Norman doesn’t is his skill at fly-fishing. Paul’s true love of fishing is what kept him going in life and was a common interest Paul and Norman had together. When either of them was in a tough situation, they could rely on the other to be there for him, and go off fishing together to get away.

When Norman said that he is “haunted by the waters” I think he is referring to the waters as a reminder of his past. The river holds many memories for him of his father, brother, and times fly-fishing with them. After Norman loses his wife, father, and brother to death, his most vivid reminder of them is the waters. The river brings back his memories of his family, particularly Paul, and is a painful reminder to him. Whenever Norman sees the waters, it brings back memories to him of all the times he spent with Paul fly-fishing and talking.

The reason I felt “I am haunted by the waters” was such a strong quote was that, to me, it spoke about his relationships with his family and how he is constantly reminded of them. I felt that the book had a strong emphasis on his relationships with his family and by writing the book he expressed them.  When Norman says the waters are haunting to him I think he is referring to it just as a constant reminder of his strong relationships with his family, particularly Paul, and how much he misses them.