# Bound for Hawaii explained — Roughing It

> Chapter companion for Roughing It by Mark Twain.

## What happens

The narrator sails from Honolulu to the island of Hawaii aboard the schooner Boomerang, enduring cramped and unsanitary conditions with cockroaches, rats, and a noisy rooster. He describes the beauty of the moonlit sea, the arrival at Hawaii with views of Mauna Loa and Hualaiai, and a horseback ride through the Kona region's orange groves and sugar plantations.

## Themes in this chapter

### Colonialism and Cultural Change

The narrator's observations of native Hawaiians (Kanakas) and the sugar plantations reflect the colonial transformation of the islands.

### Humor and Exaggeration

The exaggerated descriptions of the rooster's crowing, the cockroaches, and the cramped schooner highlight Twain's characteristic humor.

## Character check-ins

### The Narrator

Describes his uncomfortable voyage and the scenic beauty of Hawaii.

### Mr. Billings

The narrator's comrade on the voyage.

## Key lines

> The Boomerang was about as long as two street-cars, and about as wide as one.

The schooner was extremely small, roughly the length of two streetcars and the width of one.

_Twain uses a familiar comparison to emphasize the vessel's tiny size._

> I could reach the water when she lay over under a strong breeze.

When the ship heeled in a strong wind, the narrator could touch the ocean.

_Illustrates the precarious closeness to the sea._

> He could see all the climes of the world at a single glance of the eye, and that glance would only pass over a distance of four or five miles as the bird flies!

From Mauna Loa's summit, one could observe every climate zone within just a few miles.

_Highlights the dramatic vertical climate variation on Hawaii's mountains._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/roughing_it_se/chapters/lxix
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/roughing_it_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/roughing_it_se/chapters