Beyond the South End

A Sense of Place

Scene from Mcloud Street in the South End, Photo by Sandra Sylvester

Anyone who has ever lived in the South End; along the coast of Maine; or in any other area of Maine, for that matter, has a sense of place.

Our Maine writers do a good job of introducing you to the different areas of Maine they write about. Any writer hopes that if they write about the place where they grew up that they will get readers from not only the area they are writing about, but other readers out of the area. They therefore will work diligently while writing their “Maine” story to place the reader in the scene they are talking about. It only makes literary sense, after all.

I have recently had an email discussion with Ann Harris, head librarian at Thomaston Public Library about this very subject. She agrees with me about using local history in creating literature, such as the big “fire” story in Rockland’s history, which I included in my book, The South End.

To quote her email: “I’m very, very interested in the whole “sense of place” subject: how important place is, why we are drawn to some places more than others, how we seem to be losing much of the sense of place in this country as it is paved over and homogenized, etc.”

The chances of keeping the local flavor of our coastal area are bleak at this time. As one more chain store goes up, we lose another dose of local color. Do you miss Dave’s restaurant, for instance? How much longer do you think Dorman’s will last? It’s up to the Maine writer to preserve past pictures of the area as well as preserve local history.

How does a Maine writer create this “sense of place” in their story? There are many approaches the writer may use, including the senses (what special smells abound in your story); what scenery do you see around you; taste (can you taste salt water on your tongue?); hearing (do you hear fog horns or taxi cab horns…different scenes altogether.

If I may use The South End as an example, this is how I placed you into the many scenes of my story.

In the very first scene, I put our main character, Frank on the boardwalk in wintertime. He feels the cold winter breeze from the ocean. How he is dressed is mentioned to remind you of how cold you would feel in that environment.

I have included an actual map of the South End at the beginning of my book and pointed out where the homes of the important fictional characters of my story live.

When my characters travel around the neighborhood of the South End, I include the streets they cover, how they connect, and the weather conditions they encounter. A local reader can follow them easily and an out-of-town reader is then placed into the scene with other readers.

Another aspect of a “sense of place” is the ethos of the area. South End people have always known their “place” and taken pride in their resilience and ability to carry on no matter what. They help each other out and have each other’s back when necessary. The Frank in my story epitomizes the “go-to” person of the neighborhood who everyone goes to when they are in trouble. His struggles become our struggles; his triumphs also become ours.

To further the “sense of place” of the South End folks, I have included scenes from a resort area, the Samoset, at the other end of town. It’s a very different scene and one in which many of the characters in my story will never participate in even though the distance is but two or three miles away at the most.

As you read the stories of Elizabeth Ogilvie, Sarah Orne Jewett, Kenneth Roberts, Robert McCloskey and even our own Steven King, and poet Edna St. Vincent Millay, notice their “sense of place.” “Three long mountains and a wood” from Edna’s most famous poem, “Renascence,” tells you where you are in an instant. We’ve looked out at that scene many times from the top of Camden’s hills overlooking that harbor.

Rediscover your favorite Maine writers this summer. There are so many to choose from. Your local librarian will be happy to help you. My book is available at local libraries also. Happy reading!

Thanks for listening.