# The Combat explained — Toilers of the Sea > Chapter companion for Toilers of the Sea by Victor Hugo. ## What happens Gilliatt battles a violent tempest that threatens to destroy his breakwater and the sloop carrying the salvaged machinery from the Durande. He uses a fallen beam as a lever to topple a massive rock, creating a stone barrier in the defile to block the waves. When the wreck of the Durande begins to break apart, he climbs onto it with an axe to sever the hanging portion, risking his life to save the engine. ## Themes in this chapter ### Man vs. Nature Gilliatt's struggle against the relentless sea and hurricane embodies the primal conflict between human will and the overwhelming forces of nature. ### Heroism and Perseverance Despite the destruction of his breakwater and the imminent loss of the sloop, Gilliatt refuses to surrender, using every resource and his own strength to salvage the situation. ### The Sublime and Terrible Ocean The ocean is portrayed as both majestic and destructive, a sublime force that Gilliatt must confront with awe and terror. ## Character check-ins ### Gilliatt Gilliatt fights desperately against the storm, using ingenuity and physical strength to reinforce the breakwater and prevent the destruction of the sloop and machinery. ## Key lines > Gilliatt experienced the feeling of a general who sees his advanced guard driven in. Gilliatt felt like a commander watching his front line collapse under enemy attack. _This simile emphasizes Gilliatt's strategic mindset and the military-like intensity of his battle against the sea._ > He reflected with bitterness that, but for the fatal entanglement of the funnel of the Durande in the wreck, he would have been at that very moment, and even since the morning, once more at Guernsey, in the port, with the sloop out of danger and with the machinery saved. He thought bitterly that if the Durande's funnel hadn't gotten tangled in the wreck, he would already be safely back in Guernsey with the machinery. _This reveals Gilliatt's frustration and the cruel twist of fate that prolonged his ordeal._ > The conquered barrier struggled nobly against destruction. The waves had shattered it, and in their turn were shattered against it. The defeated breakwater fought valiantly even as it was destroyed; the waves broke it apart, but then broke themselves against its remains. _This paradoxical description highlights the mutual destruction of sea and barrier, a central image of the chapter._ > Gilliatt was one of those who are accustomed to snatch the means of safety out of danger itself. Gilliatt was the kind of person who finds a way to save himself by using the very dangers that threaten him. _This characterizes Gilliatt's resourcefulness and his ability to turn peril into opportunity._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/toilers_of_the_sea_se/chapters/vi-the-combat - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/toilers_of_the_sea_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/toilers_of_the_sea_se/chapters