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Chapter 9: Anchor to Windward
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Carry On, Mr. Bowditch, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Hard Work, Perseverance, and Success
Safety and Responsibility
Risk and Reward
The Growth and Development of America
Courage and Grief
Summary
Analysis
Later that same morning, Nat receives a note inviting him to visit and talk with the apprentice of a Salem apothecary who, like Nat, has an interest in science. Interested in cultivating an acquaintance with the apothecary, Mr. Read, a polymath Harvard graduate, Nat accepts. Soon, Mr. Read and his apprentice, Frederic Jordy, are teaching Nat to read—and speak—French.
In cobbling together his improvised education, Nat takes all opportunities offered to him, from Captain Smith’s nautical knowledge to the opportunity to learn French, even when he can’t yet see how it will be helpful to his future. And these lessons point toward Nat’s involvement in relationships of mutual support that extend beyond his immediate family.
Themes
The new year brings a severe storm that keeps Nat and everybody else inside for days. When the snowdrifts become passable, Elizabeth Boardman arrives, eager to buy a welcome-home gift for her father, due back soon from a voyage to the West Indies. She wants something useful, and Nat initially suggests parallel rulers. When she asks if her father already has some, Nat explodes, saying “Of course!”—any captain needs them to navigate. He immediately apologizes. Elizabeth dismisses his outburst, explaining that she’s like a chair his quick mind stumbles over in the dark. It’s not her fault, but he gets frustrated anyway. Nat feels embarrassed, and he finds himself agreeing with Lizza that Elizabeth does have unusually perceptive eyes in the back of her heart.
Despite his good qualities—cheerfulness and courage in the face of adversity, a good work ethic, and natural curiosity—Nat sometimes struggles with impatience, especially when people can’t grasp things as quickly or as naturally as he does. Elizabeth teaches him by example how to handle these situations; rather than being upset by his lack of empathy, she patiently points out to him what he’s missing and shows him how to correct it. Her lessons will come in handy later, when Nat moves from being a student to being a teacher of others. And this encounter only makes Nat fonder of Elizabeth.
Themes
It takes many weeks—and conversations—for Elizabeth to settle on the perfect gift: binoculars. As she pays for them, she tells Nat that she’s going to use them herself to watch for her father’s ship starting the next day and continuing until his return. Nat smiles to himself and bets that it will arrive tomorrow, just as Elizabeth seems to predict.
In watching for her father’s ship, Elizabeth enacts a ritual shared by many in Salem who anxiously watch and wait for the return of their sailors. In a time when voyages could take months if not years, Elizabeth’s intuitive prediction of her father’s return on a certain day becomes an act of profound hope, even in the face of uncertainty.
Themes
The next day, Dr. Bentley arrives in the chandlery with news. He’s often the first to sight returning ships from his special lookout. A merchant ship is indeed bound for the harbor, but with its flag at half-mast to show that its captain has died. Nat feels a chill, certain that Elizabeth’s father has died. But he can’t escape the busy chandlery until late that night. As soon as he does, he runs to the Boardman house where he sees Elizabeth high on the captain’s walk—a lookout often built into the houses of wealthier sailors from which their families could watch the harbor for their return. The housekeeper shows him up, begging Nat to talk her into coming inside.
Thus far, the book has thoroughly examined the griefs of Nat and his family; Elizabeth’s loss reminds readers (and Nat) that no one family has a monopoly on suffering and loss. The precarious nature of life at sea poses grave and common risks to sailors, sea captains, and those who depend on them. Courage and an ability to face these losses and suffering with equanimity become necessary to living a happy life under these circumstances. Importantly, Nat extends for the first time his sense of responsibility beyond the immediate circle of his family when he goes to comfort Elizabeth.
Themes
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As Nat crawls through the trapdoor, Elizabeth whirls, declaring her intent to stay on the walk. But she softens when she recognizes Nat. He shows her the Big Dipper and the North Star and teaches her how to tell the time by the stars. Although it takes her a little while, she grasps his patient lessons. Finally, after looking at the stars for a long time, Elizabeth tells Nat that she feels sleepy, and they descend into the house. The housekeeper thanks Nat for his help, and he explains that he just encouraged Elizabeth to look at the stars, but sometimes that act alone can shrink one’s troubles.
Elizabeth recently taught Nat an important life lesson about patience and how a good teacher explains things in a way that pupils can grasp. Now Nat returns the favor, sharing with Elizabeth a lesson his own mother taught him: how to look to the stars for direction when life seems hopeless and inescapably painful and grievous. Neither the companionship nor the stars can nullify Elizabeth’s loss. But Nat’s company reminds her that she’s not alone, and the stars remind her that her troubles, while big, are not insurmountable.
Themes
As his period of indenture draws to a close, Nat occasionally worries about what he will do afterwards. His brothers Hab, William, and Samuel and his brother-in-law David all have places in the world aboard their respective sailing ships. Sometimes Nat’s mind wanders as he adds up sums, but he never makes a mistake with such simple arithmetic. But as his freedom comes closer, his feeling of being lost and adrift intensifies, at least until Mr. Hodges slips a note under his door one morning, inviting him to stay in the house as long as he wants.
Nat’s reflections reveal the extent to which his Father asked him to sacrifice so much more than his brothers, all of whom have what Nat wants—a life at sea. His hard work has kept him from succumbing to hopelessness during the long years of his indenture, but he realizes that while making his own way in the world offers potential rewards, it also comes with risks.
Themes
