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Paper short abstract

Imbued with legend, sea storms are liminal moments of uncertainty, except that change is inevitable. Drawing on the narratives of women sea captains who have faced storms and wrestled with fear, this paper explores the role of agency in storytelling to sustain identity and share embodied knowledge.

Paper long abstract

A key element of any day on the water for a sailor is the storytelling that takes place after the boats have returned to port. Having been at sea, sometimes for days, in the elements, the safe return is nothing more than the culmination of the stories that got you there. The storm story is central to the genre of sea-going tales. These are stories about facing fear in heightened weather conditions. They demonstrate a sailor’s resilience, competence, humility, and, most importantly, their ability to adapt and learn. They reinforce membership in the community of sailors. It is the Fresnel lens that illuminates the essence of the broader experience and who you are, as a sailor. But they also reinforce our relationship to the elements. Literary scholar Camilla Brudin Borg argues that our stories are co-created with nature and place as a way of mapping our lives onto the ancient myths and legends already a part of the landscape.

Storms at sea are imbued with legend. They are also liminal moments with much uncertainty except that you will be a different person on the other side. Such times test our values and sense of self. They push us into new and often unknown realms of risk-taking. We struggle to balance risk and safety. Drawing on the narratives of women sea captains who have faced storms and wrestled with fear, this paper explores the role of agency in storytelling to sustain our sense of identity and share embodied knowledge.