Stegner frequently uses water imagery in The Spectator Bird; examples include the rainstorm that floods Joe and Ruth Allston’s driveway, the storm-tossed ocean on the day of Mr. Bertelson’s death and burial, the ocean that drowned Joe’s son, and the “tarn” where Joe and Astrid share their kiss. What themes unite these images? How are they connected with the regrets that have dogged Joe throughout his life?

What does Joe mean when he claims that he has not been “quite spectator enough” (76)? Does his attitude change throughout the novel?

Joe feels he has missed out on his calling to be an author. What is the function of the two author characters, Césare Rulli and Karen Blixen? Discuss their similarities and differences. How does the subject matter of their respective works figure in the story and its themes?