The city is a place of polarization. Masculine is set against feminine, strength against weakness, existence against non-existence. A young man enters this world and begins a quest. It is a quest that takes him through streets and squares that morph and change locations. He encounters beings whose forms and natures also change and he is initiated in rituals of extreme sado-masochistic sexuality and violence. Rich in symbolic imagery THE SEA AND THE CITY cannot be defined or explained in simple terms. Depending on the reader it may be set in this world or a parallel world. The author does not wish to impose an interpretation. John Roman Baker lives in Amsterdam. He is the author of seventeen plays, three novels and several volumes of poetry.