Summary and Response of Zadie Smith’s “The Lazy River”

“The Lazy River” is a short story of a narrator discussing her vacation at a Spanish resort with a Lazy River, a popular water attraction found usually at water parks where one floats along in a big circle of flowing water in a relaxed, lazy-like manner. This particular Lazy River can be enjoyed endlessly until one feels like leaving. The narrator uses the experiences of the Lazy River as a metaphor for the larger scheme of life. The never ending circular flow of the Lazy River is akin to the collective conscious of people ignoring their and the world’s problems in exchange for mindless comfort.  The narrator is aware of injustices and issues of poverty that surrounds the hotel, but ultimately chooses to ignore it when in the comfort of the Lazy River. It is almost as if there is a sense of guilt in the narrator’s voice for taking this vacation which is made to seem entirely like a luxury. 

Upon my first read, I was in awe of how well Zadie articulated something that comes to my mind often. As a relatively spoiled American, I have lost track at how many times I have enjoyed a luxury experience like a lazy river only for it to invite dismay at the thought of millions who do not have access to clean water. Then that sudden moment of murkiness sets off my neural pathways that are entwined with seemingly everything wrong with the world. In this space of thought, an overwhelming sensation takes hold as I internalize, much like the current of the Lazy River, the external locus of control surrounding the world’s inevitable doom. Then the optimist in me snaps me back to the social present connecting me with the rest of my fellow indulgers under the ideology that the best way to make positive change is through myself. I kind of get the same feeling from Zadie’s story. It seems like the narrator feels guilty for taking a vacation that objectively is appalling when there is so much to be done in this world. But part of her cannot help but give in to the current as everyone around her is equally at its mercy. I love how Zadie ends the short story as well. The two men cleaning is yet another reminder that even within the benign confines of vacation, filth is being left behind for others to clean. Overall, this piece a brilliant metaphor that encourages some serious reflection. I am not sure if I can ever enjoy a lazy river the same way again after reading this.