” On the lake”, by Olaf Olafsson from 2008 is a 5-page short story that manages to create such a mood that will make you uncomfortable all the way through reading it, knowing that something unpleasant is always about to happen. Whether it’s the husband and father of 1, Oskar, who is yet again about to make the wrong decision or merely the tense atmosphere that lies around the lake.
Based on the names such as Vilhelm, Bjorn, Jonas, Oskar, Margret and the general environment described, the story is most likely located somewhere in Scandinavia.
It plays with several themes such as being a father and the responsibilities that come with it; an arena in which Oskar has lots to learn as he is still unaware of how to set a good example for his son. We see this not only in his distasteful behavior towards other, but especially in the key moment of the story, the point of no return if you will. When Oskar leaves Jonas in the water to save himself, which connects to another subtheme, letting go. Literally as in dropping Jonas and figuratively as in letting go of a grudge, perhaps of a marriage with Margret.
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