Through the Tunnel

by Doris Lessing

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Where is the story "Through the Tunnel" set?

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The story "Through the Tunnel" likely takes place somewhere in southern France.

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The story is set in an unspecified foreign country, possibly South Africa.  Jerry and his mother are both English and travel to this country to vacation.  Since Jerry is not in his homeland, it is a perfect setting to help reinforce the theme of fitting in.  He sees the native boys and instantly longs to be one of them, despite not looking like them nor being able to pass "through the tunnel" as they do.  It is this drive to fit in that fuels him and sets up the story's conflict.

Another important setting of the story is that of the beach and the rocks protruding from the ocean.  These are important because the beach represents safety and the rocks represent danger.  Once Jerry has set his mind to going "through the tunnel" as the native boys do, he abandons the safety of the beach and begins to face the dangers and adversity of the rock.  In this way he is not only striving to fit in, but Jerry is also leaving the safety of childhood behind and entering the uncertain world of adulthood.

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Unfortunately, readers are never told a real-world location or date for the story. For the fictional setting, the story takes place in three main locations: in the water as Jerry trains for his dive, on the beach with his mother, or back at their hotel/resort room. The first sentence of the story tells readers that Jerry and his mother are English. This will most likely put the story in Europe somewhere. There is a good chance that they are somewhere in France, because that would be one of the closest locations to England that would have warm, sandy beaches. The other possibility for the setting is a country in Africa that borders the Mediterranean Sea. The information that the native boys do not speak English and have dark brown skin seems to indicate that the boys are much darker in complexion than a white European with a tan.

They were of that coast; all of them were burned smooth dark brown and speaking a language he did not understand.

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Where does the story "Through the Tunnel" take place?

Doris Lessing does not give the reader a specific, real-world setting location; however, we get hints throughout the story to help narrow it down. Within the fictional setting itself, the story takes place in three main locations. There is the beach; the water where Jerry swims, dives, and trains; and the hotel room.

The first sentence of the story tells readers a couple of key pieces of information. One is that Jerry and his mother are English. The other detail is that they are vacationing somewhere that has crowded beaches. At this point, a reader could legitimately say that Jerry and his mom are possibly still in England, but additional details likely place the story somewhere in southern France on the Mediterranean.

France has always been a popular vacation destination for the English because of its warm, sandy beaches and proximity to England. Readers will also be told about the boys with darker skin who are "of that coast."

They were of that coast; all of them were burned smooth dark brown and speaking a language he did not understand.

The mentioning of the language that Jerry doesn't understand is also a key piece. It is possible that Jerry and his mother are vacationing on the Mediterranean while in an African country, but that doesn't fit with Jerry's frustrated yelling at the dark skinned boys. Jerry shouts out to them using the only French words he seems to know:
... he looked up at the group of big brown boys on the rock and shouted, "Bonjour! Merci! Au revoir! Monsieur, monsieur!" while he hooked his fingers round his ears and waggled them.

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