Francis “Mac” McNamara Character Analysis in Unbroken

The only other survivor of the plane crash, Mac is a new army recruit and almost immediately loses all hope for survival on the raft. Mac’s hopelessness and selfishness endanger Louie and Phil’s lives when Mac eats all the rations. But Mac’s sense of responsibility drives him to redemption, risking his own life to protect Louie and Phil from the sharks. In the end, Mac lacks the resilience to survive, dying on the raft from malnourishment.

Francis “Mac” McNamara Quotes in Unbroken

The Unbroken quotes below are all either spoken by Francis “Mac” McNamara or refer to Francis “Mac” McNamara. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

The realization that Mac had eaten all of the chocolate rolled hard over Louie. In the brief time that Louie had known Mac, the tail gunner had struck him as a decent, friendly guy, although a bit of a reveler, confident to the point of flippancy. The crash had undone him. Louie knew that they couldn’t survive for long without food, but he quelled the thought. A rescue search was surely under way.

Related Characters: Louis “Louie” Zamperini, Francis “Mac” McNamara

Page Number and Citation: 138

Explanation and Analysis:

Mac had never seen combat, didn’t know these officers, and was largely an unknown quantity to himself. All he knew about his ability to cope with this crisis was that on the first night, he had panicked and eaten the only food they had. As time passed and starvation loomed, this act took on greater and greater importance, and it may have fed Mac’s sense of futility.

Related Characters: Francis “Mac” McNamara

Page Number and Citation: 154

Explanation and Analysis:

Francis “Mac” McNamara Character Timeline in Unbroken

The timeline below shows where the character Francis “Mac” McNamara appears in Unbroken. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...assigns Louie, Phil, and Cuppernell to another crew. The only person of note is Francis “Mac” McNamara, who has a reputation for having a sweet tooth. They are also given another... (full context)

On the surface, Phil and Mac stay afloat by holding on to some of the plane’s debris. Phil has a bleeding... (full context)

As Louie takes stock of the rations, Mac starts to scream and shout that they’re all going to die. Louie tries to calm... (full context)

...sharks rub their backs along the bottom of the raft. While Phil and Louie sleep, Mac stays wide awake, terrified at what may come. (full context)

...in the morning, he goes to divvy up the morning’s rations only to find that Mac had eaten all the chocolate during the night. Realizing Mac acted out of panic, Louie... (full context)

...day at sea, they finish all the water. After saying almost nothing the entire time, Mac snaps and begins screaming again that they’re going to die. Louie slaps him again and... (full context)

...the men collect some of the water in a makeshift hat. Louie starts to resent Mac for eating the chocolates but says nothing, believing that Mac’s guilt about eating the rations... (full context)

...bait to catch a small fish. Eating the fish revives Louie’s and Phil’s spirit, but Mac remains unchanged. Phil worries that killing a friendly albatross will bring them bad luck. This... (full context)

...trivia, telling stories, and recounting all the good food they have eaten in their lives. Mac doesn’t join in. (full context)

...the past, Phil and Louie remain confident in their ability to survive the ordeal. But Mac, a new recruit who never saw action, becomes more depressed. His guilt over eating the... (full context)

...week mark, Louie begins to pray out loud. They catch a second albatross and feed Mac its blood, hoping the nourishment will revive his spirits. On the sixth day without water,... (full context)

...on the raft but the plane turns around and prepares to shoot again. Phil and Mac are too weak to jump into the ocean so they take their chances on the... (full context)

...in the snout. After the plane passes, Louie climbs back onto the raft and finds Mac and Phil unharmed. Four more times the plane tries to kill them and each time... (full context)

...Louie patches up the raft, Phil pumps in air. With a renewed sense of life, Mac uses an oar to hit the sharks when they come close to the raft. They... (full context)

...Louie and Phil predict that they’ll arrive at land in three weeks. Not saying anything, Mac’s burst of life vanishes and he slips even deeper into despair. (full context)

One day while Louie stares into the ocean, a shark lunges at him. Luckily Mac beats the sharks away before it can injure Louie. Smiling, Mac proves himself a necessary... (full context)

As the days pass, Mac grows thinner, eventually dying from malnutrition. Although he began his journey on the raft as... (full context)