# XVI explained — Two Years Before the Mast

> Chapter companion for Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana Jr..

## What happens

The narrator and his shipmate S⸺ enjoy a liberty day ashore in San Diego. They explore the presidio, ride horses, visit the mission, and observe local life, including interactions with sailors, Indians, and townspeople. The chapter reflects on the meaning of freedom for sailors and the cultural contrasts encountered.

## Themes in this chapter

### Isolation and Longing

The narrator's joy at being ashore highlights his deep longing for freedom and connection to the life he left behind in America.

### Cultural Encounter and Otherness

The chapter contrasts Yankee sailors, Sandwich Islanders, and California Indians, emphasizing language barriers, customs, and social hierarchies.

### Class and Social Inequality

The narrator navigates the tension between his background and his role as a sailor, adhering to shipmate codes despite his education.

## Character check-ins

### Richard Henry Dana Jr.

Enjoys his first true taste of liberty ashore, reflecting on the sweetness of freedom and the bonds of shipmate loyalty.

### Mr. S⸺

Accompanies the narrator on liberty, sharing in the day's adventures and the mutual understanding to stay with the crew.

### Old Wilson

Mentioned as Captain Wilson of the Ayacucho, whose Sandwich Island boy helps procure horses for the narrator.

### Captain Thompson

Referenced indirectly as the religious captain who might give Saturday liberty; his strict rule contrasts with the day's freedom.

## Key lines

> I shall never forget the delightful sensation of being in the open air, with the birds singing around me, and escaped from the confinement, labor, and strict rule of a vessel—of being once more in my life, though only for a day, my own master.

The narrator vividly recalls the joy of stepping ashore, feeling free from the ship's discipline and able to enjoy nature and independence, even if just for a single day.

_Captures the emotional core of the liberty day experience._

> It is the universal custom with sailors for each one, in his turn, to treat the whole, calling for a glass all round, and obliging everyone who is present, even the keeper of the shop, to take a glass with him.

Sailors follow a tradition where each person buys a round of drinks for everyone present, including the shopkeeper, and refusing to participate is seen as an insult.

_Explains the social ritual of drinking among sailors ashore._

> The language of these people, which is spoken by all the Indians of California, is the most brutish and inhuman language, without any exception, that I ever heard, or that could well be conceived of.

The narrator describes the local Indian language as crude and guttural, reflecting his cultural bias and lack of understanding.

_Reveals the narrator's ethnocentric perspective on indigenous culture._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/two_years_before_the_mast_se/chapters/xvi
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/two_years_before_the_mast_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/two_years_before_the_mast_se/chapters