39 pages • 1 hour read
Sy MontgomeryThe Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness
Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2015A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapter 5Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 5 Summary: “Transformation: The Art of Breathing in the Ocean”
Chapter 5 describes Montgomery’s efforts learning to scuba dive and her diving trip to the Caribbean Sea to observe octopuses in the ocean. Her plans to take lessons with Anna and Christa don’t materialize, as both young women are unable to join her. She hopes to finish a weekend course late that summer, but must stop midway through because of severe ear pain accompanied by vertigo and nausea.
The following week, she returns to the aquarium to find everything changed. Bill and Scott are away, Anna has returned to school, and the moving of animals to new tanks has begun in order to prepare for the renovation. The 200,000-gallon Giant Ocean Tank that is central to the museum is largely closed off as its animals are transferred. This goes smoother for some than for others. Surprisingly, the 500-pound sea turtle named Myrtle is moved with relatively ease, but some of the faster fish are hard to catch with the nets. To do so, some had to be slightly anesthetized to slow them down, and one had died after failing to recover from it. This makes the staff anxious, as they don’t want to stress or otherwise harm the animals.
Montgomery tries again with scuba lessons, this time hiring a private instructor in late September and early October. Doris Morrissette, known by the nickname “Big D.” and a volunteer at the aquarium came to scuba diving later in life but then took to it wholeheartedly. It’s getting late in the season to dive in the Atlantic—for Montgomery to obtain her open-water certification—so they go to a lake in New Hampshire instead. This time, the only obstacle was the cold water, but Montgomery does fine and passes her test.
Soon afterward, Montgomery finally gets her chance to see octopuses in their natural habitat. The diving shop where Big D. works organizes a trip to Cozumel, near the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico, every fall, and Montgomery signs up. Cozumel is one of the world’s premier spots for scuba diving, and seeing an octopus is quite likely. During a dive on their first full day there, they see one in a hole beside some coral, and Montgomery is delighted. She’s finally attained her goal of seeing the likes of Octavia and Kali in their world rather than hers. Despite having trouble with her ears again and having to sit out some dives, she sees several more octopuses during the trip, mostly during night dives when they are more active.
Chapter 5 Analysis
Central to Chapter 5 is Montgomery’s trip to Mexico to dive in the ocean. She writes, “The ocean, for me, is what LSD was to Timothy Leary” (144). That is, it’s an alternative, perhaps more lucid, perception of reality. By inhabiting the world of her octopus friends, she hopes to attain a greater sense of their reality. Her interactions with Octavia and Kali have broadened her own sense of what consciousness is, and she wants to experience what they would in their natural environment.
As she dives and makes her way through the ocean, she writes that she feels as if she’s in a dream. Her sensations, emotions, and perceptions are enhanced by everything she experiences in this water world: “I find myself in an altered state of consciousness, where the focus, range, and clarity of perception are dramatically changed. Is this what Kali and Octavia feel like all the time?” (144). That was her hope and intent; now she feels closer than ever to them. To convey this to the reader, Montgomery’s reference to LSD and her description of this world as a parade of psychedelic colors (“Day-Glo yellow” and “iridescent pink”) evoke the mind-altering nature of the experience.
Another aspect of the dive is the bond she forges with her fellow divers. Once again, octopuses have brought together a diverse group of people into a kind of community. When Montgomery has trouble with her ears or feels unsure of finding her bearings in the murky deep, a fellow diver helps her. More than once, Montgomery holds the hand of a friend during a dive so as not to lose the others. The support she feels lifts her up along with the experience of exploring the ocean itself.
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By Sy Montgomery
