Question

How does the setting of “The Colomber” by Dino Buzzati impact the theme of the work?

Answer 1

Answer:   The setting of “The Colomber” is the sea. The sea is a spooky setting because it has so many unexplored regions, too deep for most man-made machines to explore. It is also spooky that the colomber wanders the ocean because the oceans are all interconnected. Stefano will always be on some continent surrounded by ocean. Although he may be far away from the edge of shore, he’s always surrounded. This enforces the theme in the story that one cannot escape one’s fears. No matter where Stefano is, the lure and the presence of the ocean (which is home to the creature he most fears) is always waiting for him.