The symbol of water is a significant part of the plot of One Foot in EdEN by Ron Rash. It represents several different ideas - life, fear, inevitability, and punishment. The ideas are seen throughout the book, beginning in the first chapter.
The first time water is seen is in chapter one. In this sense it represents life. There is a drought in the upstate and the lack of water is causing crops to wither. The sheriff thinks, "Dead blacksnakes draped on the fences told me what I already knew from the way corn and tobacco wilted in the fields - it had rained no more up here than it had in Seneca" (9). The lack of rain was going to cause the deaths of not only the crops, but potentially the farmers as well. But water was not as unkind to everyone. Billy Holcombe had a source of water next to his crop that provided it with some life, "It was a good crop, bright green and tall, nothing like the tobacco in the fields I"d seen earlier. The river had saved him, soaking the soil so well in spring the roots still got moisture" (14). It may not have spared all of his crops, but the money he would make from selling his most valuable crop, tobacco, would be enough. But water was not always desirable.
Both Billy Holcombe and Sheriff Alexander have an injury to their legs. Billy's is from polio and the Sheriff's is from a football injury. This has made them both unable to swim. Since they cannot swim, they cannot safely traverse areas of deep water. The Sheriff's fear, "My knee wouldn't enjoy risking a slip in the river, but there was nothing to be done about that," and Billy's, "He was scared, scared because it was clear he couldn't swim" (33). .
Water represents the inevitable throughout the book. Carolina Power was coming to cover up Jocassee and there was nothing the residents could do about it. Sherman Jameson says, "That dam's built, and the gates are closed. It doesn't matter if you"re living or dead.
