The mirror of the sea: Narrative identity, sea kayak adventuring and implications for outdoor adventure education

Abstract

This paper explores the complex and changing nature of adventure as a form of cultural practice. Borrowing from Joseph Conrad's memoirs The Mirror of The Sea (1907), sea kayaking is contextualized here as a journey that takes place just as much between 'landfall and departure' as it does between the paddler's ears (i.e., in the paddler's mind). That is to say, to gain useful insights into the experience of sea kayaking it is necessary to consider both the external and internal journey of the paddler, and the relationship that exists between these two phenomena. Using tenets of personality psychology which presents new ways of understanding narrative identity, we will 'waymark' textual vignettes from four modern day sea kayaking adventure narratives to explore ideas of self, narrative identity and meaning making. These key passages aim to reveal how the adventurer's story is influenced by "external factors that shape the public expression of stories about the self" (McAdams & McLean, 2013, p. 233). Summary discussion will address potential implications for contemporary outdoor adventure education, offering a way of stimulating reflective practice about the culturally and textually constructed nature of adventure.

The vitalizing sea: embodiment and wellbeing on a sea-kayak journey

“…This parallels with other studies that express similar attitudes (Gurholt 2014;Dykes and Miles 2018;Miles and Wattchow 2015), suggesting that outdoor experiences like seakayaking, can be a powerful experiential tool in environmental education and for selfexploration:…”

“…It practices the ability to reflect on and communicate needs, find ways to cope, manage stress and challenge. This seems related to form of vitality and immersion but also liminal qualities of the sea which has been well described (Varley 2011;Miles and Wattchow 2015). It seems possible that dynamic forces in motion, energy and power represent forces or counter forces at sea, thus facilitate developmental processes and expand personal capabilities differently.…”

“…Varley (2011) highlighted the liminal quality of seakayaking experiences as chiefly countercultural and deeply reinvigorating. Miles & Wattchow (2015) similarly asserts, that the departure from the land and return, marks and important spatial-psychological change. A different state of being thus may exists when in communion with the sea, than on land.…”