_Initial Incident_: Spike kills the bo’sun.
_Steps to Dramatic Climax_: Spike is chained in the locker. Tom is
given the key. Tom is tempted to give up the key. He refuses, hearing
that the ship will go on to Liverpool, knowing moreover that if he
betrays his duty his chance will be lost. After four months the ship
comes to anchor. Meantime Spike has filed his chains. The girl comes
on board. She beseeches Old Tom to let him go.
_Dramatic Climax_: “Take him.”
_Steps to Climax of Action_: The escape in the mission boat to the
tramp steamer. Spike gets aboard.
_Dénouement_: Tom must remain here. Irony in the understanding that
the tramp is bound for Liverpool.
PRESENTATION. Who tells the story? Has he any part in the action? How
does the narrator bridge over the long passage so as to secure emphasis
on the story action?
CHARACTERIZATION. How many times does the narrator refer to Old Tom’s
scratching his ribs? Is the repetition of an act, emphasis on a habit,
a sound method of character delineation? Is it too “easy”?
What idea do you form of Tom from his speeches?
How does his animosity to Spike serve to portray him?
By what means does the narrator elicit from the reader sympathy for
Spike? How does he hold it?
Study the picture and the character of the mission girl.
ATMOSPHERE. Try to define the mood or feeling of the narrative. What
influence has Fate in creating the atmosphere? Study the contribution
toward the atmosphere in the dramatic forecast on page 165. How is this
forecast properly subdued? Has the superstition of sailors a dramatic
value? How is the setting made contributory to the atmosphere?