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Captains Courageous · Chapter
Epigraph explained
The epigraph, a stanza from Longfellow's poem, sets the tone for the novel by contrasting the speaker's life on land with the persistent allure of the sea, as evoked by the tales of old sailors.
What happens
The epigraph, a stanza from Longfellow's poem, sets the tone for the novel by contrasting the speaker's life on land with the persistent allure of the sea, as evoked by the tales of old sailors.
Themes in this chapter
The Sea and Nature
The epigraph introduces the sea as a powerful, alluring force that contrasts with the speaker's land-bound life.
Key passages
“I ploughed the land with horses, But my heart was ill at ease, For the old sea-faring men Came to me now and then, With their sagas of the seas.”
Although I worked the land, I felt restless because sailors would visit me and tell stories of the sea.
The epigraph captures the longing for the sea that pervades the novel.