The Red Turtle Page #5

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He lifts up the turtle's shell, braces himself and, with his anger giving him the

strength of ten, manages to turn it onto its back.

But that's still not enough for him. Now he jumps on its belly like a child

having a tantrum, then throws sand into its face before striding away.

He dives into the sea and bathes for a long time, as if washing his hands of

it, to forget his act or to regain his self-control.

Birds fly above the waves. The sun is at its zenith.

The man comes back from his swim. The crabs scuttle away as he goes past.

He walks around the turtle and carries on walking.

He starts building another raft, a few yards away from the turtle which is still

on its back and looking a sorry sight.

...

It's the middle of the afternoon, the sun is beating down. The turtle's agony

must be terrible, but the man doesn't want to think about it. He glances at it

from afar, then goes fishing for his evening meal.

When he comes back from his swim at dusk, the crabs scurry away as he

goes past:
The man is dangerous.

And yet his anger has at last subsided.

He goes over to the turtle, touches its paw and its strange skin.

A few insects buzz around the animal. Its paw is no longer moving. Maybe it's

at death's door. The man hesitates: Should he save it?

He goes and sits down nearby and holds his head in his hands.

The crabs seize this opportunity to pounce on his catch lying at his feet.

Then, all of a sudden, in the middle of the night, the turtle flies away.

The man runs behind it. He tries to stop it, but it climbs ever higher in the

sky.

The man wakes up. It was just a dream.

He runs over to the turtle which is still lying motionless on its back, dying.

He knees down next to it, touches its leg, and tries with all his strength to

turn it over onto its belly, but to no avail.

It seems heavier than it was before, or maybe the man's strength has

diminished.

The man sees the turtle's head lolling wretchedly.

He runs to fetch his bamboo container and sprinkles some seawater on its

face. He does this several times, but the animal doesn't stir.

The man kneels down beside it, shattered.

Seen from above, the man and the turtle, very close to one another, form a

strange hybrid creature.

II. 2. Half-woman, half-turtle. Care and attention.

The man and the turtle have fallen asleep on the sand, head to tail.

At the first light of dawn, a sinister cracking wakes the man.

He sits up and stares: the turtle's shell has split almost right across its belly.

It's a horrible sight.

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