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Chapter 5: A Voice in the Night
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
Nat surpasses everyone’s expectations and learns the necessary skills from Michael Walsh within two months instead of three. He cannot shake his dread over a future of indenture, a future which will keep him from ever going back to school and finishing his education. Lizza also worries about what she perceives to be Nat’s impending imprisonment. But Nat assures her he will be safe and happy—while swallowing his own rising tears.
Nat’s character inclines him to hard work naturally, and he throws himself into this next phase of his life despite his disappointment over the lost hope of a college education. Even though he dreads the future, he perseveres in the task at hand. And he continues to take on responsibility for the wellbeing and comfort of his family members—although he seems to get as much comfort from Lizza’s presence in his life as he tries to offer her, too.
Themes
At the end of the second month of instruction, Jonathan Hodges calls on Michael Walsh to bring Nat to his new home—a small, simple room in Hodges’ own house with a view of the harbor. Hodges seems seriously invested in making sure that Nat has as happy and comfortable a life as possible during his indenture. He leads Nat to the chandlery, where a lanky, unshaven man named Ben Meeker stands by the door. He’s a Ropes and Hodges employee who volunteers to show Nat around.
Although it seems like the indenture merely represents an extension of the Bowditch family’s bad luck, Nat soon realizes that Mr. Hodges and Mr. Ropes genuinely care about him and respect his ability and intelligence. On his first day, Nat also meets Ben Meeker, who provides a warning counterexample of what happens when a person allows themselves to be consumed by grief or fails to work hard enough to reach their full potential.
Themes
Ben Meeker stretches lazily and leads Nat into the warehouse, where he lounges against a barrel and insists that he, too, was a bright young man who became becalmed after he was pulled from school and indentured in his youth. Another voice interrupts his stream of complaints, insisting that only weaklings give up when they’re becalmed. The voice belongs to Captain Sam Smith, another friend of Father’s, who warmly greets Nat and volunteers to take over the tour from Ben. Smith tells Nat that a strong man never lets himself becomes stuck no matter the circumstances. If there’s no breeze, one can sail by ash breeze—in other words, row the ship with strong oars made of ash trees.
Ben Meeker describes his indenture as becoming “becalmed,” a bit of sailing lingo that means a ship has become unable to move due to lack of wind. Nat faces a similar fate to Ben’s if he wallows in his unhappiness over losing his shot to attend Harvard—or he can figure out a way to make the best of his circumstances, like sailors rowing their ship through windless seas. Captain Sam Smith, who sailed with Father in the past, encourages Nat to do the latter.
Themes
Jonathan Hodges hands Nat a fat, blank notebook, which Nat eagerly accepts. Hodges promises him as many notebooks as he needs. Smith announces his plan to start at the “stern” and “work forward along the starboard bulkhead” and Nat impresses Hodges with his nautical knowledge when he shows that he understands the captain’s words—they’ll start at the back of the warehouse and work their way forwards along the right-hand wall. Sam shows Nat all the equipment and explains how sailors use each item, including the “logs” and hourglasses that sailors use to calculate a ship’s speed.
Nat’s innate curiosity and eagerness to learn almost anything quickly buoy his spirits, and he begins to build the foundation of knowledge he will someday use to write his own book. His hard work and perseverance will lead to success, even if he can’t imagine how at this point.
Themes
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When Ben Meeker next appears in the chandlery, weeks later, he finds Nat busily writing notes in his notebook. The boy cheerfully tells Ben that he’s sailing by ash breeze. Ben shrugs and predicts that Nat will get mighty tired of doing that over the course of his nine-year indenture.
Again, Ben Meeker offers a mirror by which to judge Nat’s path through life. Both faced similar circumstances, but Ben chose to give up, while Nat elects to work even harder when he encounters a setback. This contributes to the book’s claim that anyone can make themselves a success through hard work.
Themes
