The Lesson ‘The town by the sea’ is a short story by Amitav Ghosh. The Story is about an heart-rending and disastrous natural calamity. A scientist searches for his dear ones lost in the calamity. In the end, he finds and collects only his experimental slides. He decides to immerse himself in his work to drown his grief.

The writer tells us than the ‘Director ’ was in Port blair on 25 Dec 2004, on his way to Delhi. As he was going officially, he had left his family in Malacca. That night he stayed in Haddo circuit House. The next morning he felt the earth shaking and floor of his room heaving. He ran out to save himself. At that time he received a call from his wife in Malacca, Camicobar. After the ground stopped shaking he tried to call his wife but could not reach her.

He observed that the Jea water in the harbor had began to rise very rapidly. He ran to the higher ground with other people to safety. He was reminded of the fact that the Car-Nicobar islands were low-lying islands and he grew – anxious. He called the government office at Car Nicobar which had satellite phone and learnt that Malacca was badly hit and there was no news about his family. In the afternoon he came to know that his thirteen year old son had been found clinging to the rafters of a church.

The family home had been swept away by a huge sea wave. His wife and daughter could not be traced. The director managed to come to Malacca. He searched for his wife and daughter among the rubble but found only some of their possessions. The director returned to Car Nicobar with his son.

The writer had also accompanied them. Astonishingly but Mecifullythe forest and coconut palms remained undisturbed while most of the human habitation had been destroyed. The TSunami had been peculiarly selective in the manner of its destruction. When they reached the mins of the circuit house they found a mound of house hold goods and the director found his suitcase.

The director only took his slides. The director Showed the writer die spot where his house once stood. He told the writer that his wife was an English teacher at a local school, but wanted to leave, the director could not get a transfer. He felt that she could have achieved many things and he had Med to give the opportunity. He pointed to his daughter vinceta’s paintbox but did not pick it up and said “What good will it do? What will it give back?”

The Writer wondered himself, being a husband, father and human being, what he would have done and felt. Would he have chosen to forget the past? He found that the answer, to the question was a matter of expressing the innermost sovereignity of ourselves because nothing remained to cloud our vision. The writer was surprised to see that there wasn’t any hesitation or doubt when the director chose to abandon his wifes and daughter’s belongings. He must have found some comfort in the knowledge of an impersonal effort.

The writer felt that at such moments, words seem to be futile and nothing is of value other than to act and intervene in the course of events. The next day the writer understood that the director had mounted the most singular and most powerful defence he would ever withness. ie. to get involved in one own work.