White Point is a fictional place, its industry invented. The fishing motif helps to explain the character differences between rivals Jim Buckridge and Lu Fox. Jim, the town’s most prolific and successful fisherman, lives for the large hauls, which the town celebrates with rancorous festivities that border on zealotry. He fishes for quantity, hauling the bounty of the sea in by the kilo. He is a legal fisherman who has paid large sums for his licenses and permits, and who suffers the burden of taxes. To him, fishing is a business, and he is a manager of men and machinery. He is not friendly with his crew and can exchange one crew member for another without commentary. His use of the sea is emotionless, though he adamantly refers to himself as a fisherman. Jim uses the sea, shows little affection or appreciation for its bounty, and takes no joy in the art of it. It is merely an occupation.

In contrast, Lu is an illegal fisherman whose encounters with the ocean are described as near-orgasmic experiences that bring Lu relief from his reality. Lu goes to the water to escape, to be embraced by the ocean, consumed by it, and appreciative.