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Captains Courageous

Rudyard Kipling

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Mar 05, 2021 Werner rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-i-own, general-fiction, classics

This was a book I read as background for teaching British Literature, back when Barb and I were homeschooling our girls. My prior acquaintance with Kipling consisted of having read The Jungle Book as a kid, plus some of his short and short-ish fiction and a handful of his poems. (Though this novella is not long, either --it runs to about 147 pages of actual text, though some editions have introductory material.)

15-year-old Harvey Cheyne is the arrogant, self-centered, spoiled-brat son of a "robb This was a book I read as background for teaching British Literature, back when Barb and I were homeschooling our girls. My prior acquaintance with Kipling consisted of having read The Jungle Book as a kid, plus some of his short and short-ish fiction and a handful of his poems. (Though this novella is not long, either --it runs to about 147 pages of actual text, though some editions have introductory material.)

15-year-old Harvey Cheyne is the arrogant, self-centered, spoiled-brat son of a "robber-baron" style millionaire. The boy's on his way to Europe on a luxury liner, for a stint at a (no doubt pricey and prestigious) boarding school; but when he accidentally falls overboard off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, and gets saved from drowning by the crew of the fishing boat We're Here out of Gloucester, Massachusetts, he's in for an education of a much different sort. Captain Troop isn't about to return to land until he's ready (which will be in about four months), doesn't believe Harvey's dad is as rich as the boy claims, and isn't impressed with his bluster. In the meantime, he can have his room and board on the boat (and a modest wage), provided he works for it. (Of course, Harvey's never worked a day in his life.) This is the story of his summer at sea, of its immediate aftermath, and a brief (about a page long) look at three of the characters a few years later.

Goodreads' description for its main or default edition declares that this book is, "Brimming with adventure and humor." Adventure may be what readers of Kipling expect. (I don't know about humor in that respect --there is some here in places, but it's definitely not something that stands out as very noticeable.) In the main, though, this is not primarily a tale of adventure. Yes, there are storms at sea, and the wreck of another boat (caused by being rammed in the fog by a large steamship going too fast). But the We're Here is primarily after herring, not Moby Dick; the age of piracy is long over, and war at sea is something in the remote past or the unguessed future. Commercial fishing in 1897 is rough and dangerous work (and, I'd surmise, still is); but this is mainly about the realistic routine of rough work at sea, and about a boy learning to be a man that other people can respect. Erroneous reader expectations going in may account for some low ratings and unflattering reviews the book gets; Kipling is usually associated with the Romantic school, but this is no romance of high adventure at sea. Instead, he's writing here very much in the Realist style. That accounts for his use of New England dialect for some characters' speech, which some critical reviewers also complain of, but which he handles pitch-perfectly. (Kipling lived in Vermont from 1892-1896, and wrote Captains Courageous during that time.)

For the kind of novel this actually is, the tale is skillfully crafted and well told. It conveys, very effectively, important messages about what really is and isn't important in life, what qualities of character a person should aspire to, what responsibilities you have to make your own way in the world (and about how you owe a lot more to the human world around you than the world owes you), and how other human beings ought to be treated. (Kipling also takes a serious look at the parent-child, and particularly father-son relationship, through the exploration of two very different ones. It's not necessarily a spoiler to say that Harvey isn't the only Cheyne who could benefit from learning some lessons.) Vivid, round character development is a strength of the book, and the author displays a profound understanding of human psychology, for both the main and the secondary characters. (Personally, I found Penn one of the most intriguing.) The boat's cook (who claims to have "second sight" --and perhaps does) is a black man, and he's referred to twice here with the n-word, reflecting the way some people of that time would speak; but he's neither a buffoon nor a villain, and I don't think the author's treatment of him is invidious or demeaning.

All in all, IMO, this book is as relevant today as it ever was. Indeed, I'm inclined to think many of today's entitled and irresponsible teens (who may be as pampered as millionaries' sons were in 1897) could benefit from a shove into the water near a boat like the We're Here.

A couple of side notes: the odd title here comes from a popular ballad of that day, "Mary Ambree," which opens with the line, ""When captains courageous, whom death could not daunt...." Also, the 1996 movie adaptation starring Robert Urich (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115825/ ) drastically changes the ending here in order to ratchet up the drama. It's good enough as its own story --and should have been made with the proper names changed to make it its own, different story-- but as an adaptation I'd have to give it very low marks. ...more

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Mar 14, 2011 Alandra rated it liked it

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