King Of The Sea Analysis

‘King of the Sea’ by Dina Zaman is a short story based in a Malay village area that revolves mainly around how grief is perceived and how the coping process is done differently by different people as well as the negative consequences of chasing after wealth over the necessities of the family in times of need. Published in the early 21th century, the various ways of the acceptance of death may well be a reflection of, though not exclusive to, the modern way of coping in this era. By using psychoanalytic criticism, the story strives to justify the character’s behaviours and actions after the death of a family member. In particular, this analysis will narrow down to the following concepts; the unconscious, defence mechanism and the later theory.

The boasting he’s done to his family members show that he has a money-driven personality that should never be followed, especially by the younger ones. He wants power , prestige and recognization in his work and assumes that it can be measured in terms of monetary wealth. In conclusion, this short story which was analysed from a psychoanalytic criticism point of view of Dina Zaman’s ‘King of the Sea’, goes further into the unconscious effects of life leading up the death of a family member to with regards to the notion of the unconscious, defence mechanism and the later theory. In my opinion, though it seems that all the characters seemed to be at fault for the actions that they have done throughout the short story, they are actually the victims themselves of a devastating incident. I feel that what Dina Zaman is trying to highlight, judging by actions and behaviours portrayed by the characters is how different people cope with a recent death of a family member, especially the man of the house and how there is no right and wrong when it comes to dealing with this problem. Rather, how it affects other people who are living among them and how to manage the life after