Brotherhood, Loyalty, and Hardship Theme Analysis

Amidst the chaos of their Dad’s alcoholism, brothers Harry, Miles, and Joe Curren are subject to rampant abuse and neglect. As their father’s behavior grows increasingly erratic and their family structure deteriorates in the wake of their Mum and Uncle Nick’s deaths, the Curren brothers are forced to become one another’s support system, and they remain steadfastly loyal to one another. The infallible strength of their bond provides a level of solidarity and understanding that is unique to siblings, and the brothers are able to find solace in each other’s company even in the midst of traumatic circumstances. The deeply loyal brotherhood between Harry, Miles, and Joe reflects the inherent resilience of the human spirit in the face of cruelty, while also highlighting how some burdens cannot be shouldered alone. With the three brothers at its core, Past the Shallows shows how hardship can strengthen sibling bonds, and how this brotherhood is a crucial element of enduring life’s challenges.

Despite quintessential moments of conflict and sibling rivalry between Miles and Joe, Miles’s relationship with his older brother serves as an escape from his troubled home life and the forced drudgery of his job on the family fishing boat. Joe (who, at thirteen, moved out of Dad’s house to live with the boys’ Granddad) is concerned for his brothers’ wellbeing, and often takes Miles out to surf and fish in order to give his brother a temporary escape from his difficult life. These shared serene moments with his older brother are a respite for Miles, providing him with a sense of comfort and stability that he does not receive from Dad at home or at work on the boat. While family is not purely a force of good in the novel—after all, most of the brothers’ struggles stem from their father, an abusive alcoholic—the boys’ relationships with one another show how family can also serve as a lifeline in the midst of pain.

Since quality time with Joe is what buoys Miles in an otherwise heartbreaking life, he is resentful and afraid when his older brother builds a boat and plans on leaving Bruny Island to escape the painful reality of their disintegrated family. Although Joe is nineteen and it is ostensibly normal for him to leave home, the value Miles places on their brotherhood turns this act into a personal affront that threatens to destabilize Miles’s sense of security. Miles’s deep distress surrounding Joe’s departure speaks to how vital Joe’s brotherly friendship has been in keeping Miles afloat emotionally, highlighting the way that family bonds can be a balm for pain and suffering.

Similar to his brotherhood with Joe, Miles’s relationship with his younger brother, Harry, is in many ways characteristic of a typical bond between siblings. The abuse they both receive from Dad, however, creates a profound, unspoken loyalty between Miles and Harry that gives each of them a sense of purpose and a reason to persevere through their mistreatment. Though the youngest of the three brothers, Harry is mature beyond his years and often makes sweet gestures toward Miles such as buying him a goodie bag at the boat races, caring for him when he is sick, and even trying to defend him from Dad’s ire. While Miles is sometimes impatient and frustrated by Harry’s naïveté, his little brother’s thoughtful treatment of him is a nurturing presence that helps fill the void of Mum’s death and Dad’s neglect.

Miles returns the favor of Harry’s kindness, remaining loyal and protective of his little brother even under the looming threat of violence from Dad. After a particularly harrowing episode of drunken violence from Dad and his equally abusive friend Jeff, Miles tenderly packs a bag for Harry and leaves his little brother at his friend Stuart’s house (where he knows he will be safe) and returns home alone to face the brunt of Dad’s drunken wrath. Despite the abuse that the two younger Curren brothers continually face, their brotherly bond gives them the strength and resilience they need to endure their circumstances.

This strong bond of solidarity that Miles and Harry share culminates in Miles facing his phobia of the deep ocean to save Harry after Dad throws him overboard, a moment that parallels Miles’s childhood memory of Joe saving him when he fell in the river. Although he is unable to save Harry from drowning, this act is the ultimate display of Miles’s steadfast love, courage, and self-sacrifice as he risks his own life in an attempt to rescue his little brother. Although family is the cause of Harry and Miles’s hardship in this circumstance, as Dad is the one to throw Harry overboard, the brothers’ close familial bond remains a source of resilience and comfort for them both as they desperately try to stay alive in the freezing water.

The novel resists a clean ending, as brotherhood ultimately does not save the day and vanquish evil. Instead, the ending is steeped in both heartache and hope, reflecting the realistic complexity of family life. While Dad’s abusive nature wreaks havoc on the Curren family and eventually kills Harry, the unyielding loyalty between Miles and Joe is made even stronger by the tragedy of their little brother’s death. Miles and Joe’s brotherhood allows them to band together to continue the legacy of Harry’s kind spirit, overcome the painful memories of their traumatic upbringing, and ultimately break free of Bruny Island.