Until Reef meets Leeza, he presents as an unredeemable character. In the courtroom where the prosecution lays out the facts against him—including pictures of the automobile wreckage—he acts as if it is a pageant meant to inconvenience him. He doesn’t understand why everyone is being so dramatic when only one person was hurt.

Redemption means to be saved or to experience salvation. Redemption typically requires the intercession of another person or, in Christianity, a divine being who offers salvation. When the judge sentences him, she gives Reef a chance to improve his life and make a difference.

Even though the word “redemption” has strong religious connotations, religion and faith do not have a specific role in Reef’s redemption. In the story’s first half, he is too angry and frightened to consider that he might change. His insistence that he doesn’t make plans precludes any plans or strategies he might use to work on himself because that would require him to consider his future.

The theme of redemption and forgiveness, in terms of Reef’s self-image, begins when he compares himself to the protective coral reef. He can’t protect Nan, however, and his rage is, in large part, a result of his inability to protect her: “In the end, he hadn’t been able to save the one person who’d meant everything to him.