"Master and Commander"

Paper Summary:

Patrick O'Brian's novel "Master and Commander", brings life at sea to life by focusing on strong characterization and themes that accentuate these characters. The paper explains how O'Brian introduces us to Jack and Stephen, two main characters that are strong, complimentary, and different enough from one another to provide a different take on life at sea. The paper shows that, in addition, O'Brian employs the theme of man versus man and man versus nature to build the plot and enhance the action of the novel. These elements operate together to create a novel that provides us a realistic sense of what life at sea was like during the nineteenth century.

From the Paper:

"Another theme O'Brian uses is man versus nature. Because they are at sea, they are at the mercy of the elements. The crew endures the elements of the weather as they sail. For example, in one scene, the ship encounters a storm with intense rainfall as the "seas mounted higher and higher: they were not the height of the great Atlantic rollers, but they were steeper, and in a way more wicked; their heads tore off streaming in front of them so as to race through the Sophie's tops" (153). Here we see how the men at sea had to be courageous not only with other men but they also had to be strong when it came to withstanding the harsh elements of nature, over which they had no control."

More papers on "Master and Commander":

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• Book Review # 72386 : "'Master and Commander'"
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