Nature and the Sublime

The Caribbean landscape is depicted as both beautiful and terrifying—hummingbirds, hurricanes, earthquakes, and crocodiles—overwhelming human agency and reducing characters to passive observers.

The earthquake is described as Heaven's last, most terrible card, and Emily feels she has survived something dangerous and sublime. The tropical landscape, with its palms, fireflies, and oppressive heat, evokes both awe and foreboding.

The hurricane is depicted as an overwhelming, sublime force that reduces human structures and efforts to insignificance, with wind like a solid block and lightning all around.

The intense heat, the sea like quicksilver, and the vivid battle between the goat and pig highlight the raw, untamed forces of nature.

The description of the starry night, luminous fish, and the sea's glittering blackness evokes the awe and terror of the natural world.