Travel Essays · Chapter
The Stowaways explained
Stevenson reflects on the adventurous and precarious lives of stowaways, recounting the stories of two stowaways aboard his ship: Alick, a Scots engineer who abandoned his idle life after hearing of a friend's success in America, and a seco
What happens
Stevenson reflects on the adventurous and precarious lives of stowaways, recounting the stories of two stowaways aboard his ship: Alick, a Scots engineer who abandoned his idle life after hearing of a friend's success in America, and a second, unnamed stowaway with a pale face and a gift for storytelling. He also describes a mysterious young woman traveling without a ticket, rumored to be with a married man, who becomes the subject of gossip among the steerage passengers.
Themes in this chapter
Travel and Discovery
The chapter explores the adventurous and uncertain nature of stowaway travel, revealing the hopes and perils of seeking a new life across the Atlantic.
Social Class and Inequality
The contrast between the stowaways' desperate circumstances and the comfort of paying passengers underscores class divisions, as seen in the polite but equivocal demeanor of the second stowaway.
Human Connection and Community
The shared stories and bonds formed among steerage passengers, including the stowaways, highlight the communal aspects of the voyage.
Characters to notice
- Alick
A Scots engineer and stowaway, formerly idle in Glasgow, who decided to emigrate after hearing of a friend's success in America.
- Mackay
A fellow passenger who identifies the eloquent talker as a stowaway and offers cynical commentary on the practice.
- The Devonian
A young stowaway from Devonshire, working alongside Alick, described as handsome and in tatters.
Key passages
“All the world over, people are stowing away in coal-holes and dark corners, and when ships are once out to sea, appearing again, begrimed and bashful, upon deck.”
Everywhere, people hide in coal bunkers and dark spaces on ships, only to emerge dirty and embarrassed once the vessel is at sea.
Stevenson generalizes the stowaway phenomenon as a global practice.
“He was a Homeric talker, plain, strong, and cheerful; and the things and the people of which he spoke became readily and clearly present to the minds of those who heard him.”
He spoke with a powerful, straightforward, and joyful style, making his stories and characters vividly real to his listeners.
Stevenson praises the unnamed stowaway's storytelling ability.
“The Irish husband, who sang his wife to sleep, and this Scottish girl serving her Orson, were the two bits of human nature that most appealed to me throughout the voyage.”
The Irishman who sang to his wife and the Scottish girl caring for her large, sick companion were the most touching human moments I witnessed on the trip.
Stevenson highlights two poignant relationships among the passengers.