Nautical fiction, frequently also naval fiction, sea fiction, naval adventure fiction or maritime fiction, is a genre of literature with a setting on or near the

sea The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...

, that focuses on the human relationship to the sea and sea voyages and highlights nautical culture in these environments. The settings of nautical fiction vary greatly, including merchant ships, liners, naval ships, fishing vessels, life boats, etc., along with sea ports and fishing villages. When describing nautical fiction, scholars most frequently refer to

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself ...

novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian ''novella'' meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) fact ...

s, and

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest t ...

, sometimes under the name of sea novels or sea stories. These works are sometimes adapted for the theatre, film and television. The development of nautical fiction follows with the development of the English language novel and while the tradition is mainly British and North American, there are also significant works from literatures in Japan, France,

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and S ...

, and other Western traditions. Though the treatment of themes and settings related to the sea and maritime culture is common throughout the history of western literature, nautical fiction, as a distinct genre, was first pioneered by

James Fenimore Cooper James Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1789 – September 14, 1851) was an American writer of the first half of the 19th century, whose historical romances depicting colonist and Indigenous characters from the 17th to the 19th centuries brought ...

(''

The Pilot A pilot is a person who flies or navigates an aircraft. Pilot or The Pilot may also refer to: * Maritime pilot, a person who guides ships through hazardous waters * Television pilot, a television episode used to sell a series to a television netw ...

'', 1824) and Frederick Marryat ('' Frank Mildmay'', 1829 and ''

Mr Midshipman Easy ''Mr. Midshipman Easy'' is an 1836 novel by Frederick Marryat, a retired captain in the Royal Navy. The novel is set during the Napoleonic Wars, in which Marryat himself served with distinction. Plot summary Easy is the son of foolish parent ...

'' 1836) in the early 19th century. There were 18th century and earlier precursors that have nautical settings, but few are as richly developed as subsequent works in this genre. The genre has evolved to include notable

literary works Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

Herman Melville Herman Melville ( born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are '' Moby-Dick'' (1851); '' Typee'' (1846), a ...

's ''

Moby Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is the sailor Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship ''Pequod'', for revenge against Moby Dick, the giant whi ...

'' (1851),

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Polish-British novelist and short story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language; though he did not spe ...

's ''

Lord Jim ''Lord Jim'' is a novel by Joseph Conrad originally published as a serial in ''Blackwood's Magazine'' from October 1899 to November 1900. An early and primary event in the story is the abandonment of a passenger ship in distress by its crew, i ...

'' (1899–1900), popular fiction like C.S. Forester's Hornblower series (1937–67), and works by authors that straddle the divide between popular and literary fiction, like

Patrick O'Brian Patrick O'Brian, CBE (12 December 1914 – 2 January 2000), born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of sea novels set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, and cent ...

's Aubrey-Maturin series (1970–2004). Because of the historical dominance of nautical culture by men, they are usually the central characters, except for works that feature ships carrying women passengers. For this reason, nautical fiction is often marketed for men. Nautical fiction usually includes distinctive themes, such as a focus on

masculinity Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviors ...

and heroism, investigations of social hierarchies, and the psychological struggles of the individual in the hostile environment of the sea. Stylistically, readers of the genre expect an emphasis on adventure, accurate representation of maritime culture, and use of nautical language. Works of nautical fiction may be romances, such as

historical romance Historical romance is a broad category of mass-market fiction focusing on romantic relationships in historical periods, which Walter Scott helped popularize in the early 19th century. Varieties Viking These books feature Vikings during the Dar ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

, and

adventure fiction Adventure fiction is a type of fiction that usually presents danger, or gives the reader a sense of excitement. Some adventure fiction also satisfies the literary definition of romance fiction. History In the Introduction to the ''Encycloped ...

, and also may overlap with the genres of

war fiction A war novel or military fiction is a novel about war. It is a novel in which the primary action takes place on a battlefield, or in a civilian setting (or home front), where the characters are preoccupied with the preparations for, suffering th ...

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

, travel narratives (such as the

Robinsonade Robinsonade () is a literary genre that takes its name from the 1719 novel '' Robinson Crusoe'' by Daniel Defoe. The success of this novel spawned so many imitations that its name was used to define a genre, which is sometimes described simpl ...

), the

social problem novel The social novel, also known as the social problem (or social protest) novel, is a "work of fiction in which a prevailing social problem, such as gender, race, or class prejudice, is dramatized through its effect on the characters of a novel". More ...

and

psychological fiction In literature, psychological fiction (also psychological realism) is a narrative genre that emphasizes interior characterization and motivation to explore the spiritual, emotional, and mental lives of the characters. The mode of narration examin ...

Definition

What constitutes nautical fiction or sea fiction, and their constituent naval, nautical or sea novels, depends largely on the focus of the commentator. Conventionally sea fiction encompasses novels in the vein of Marryat, Conrad, Melville, Forester and O'Brian: novels which are principally set on the sea, and immerse the characters in nautical culture. Typical sea stories follow the narrative format of "a sailor embarks upon a voyage; during the course of the voyage he is tested – by the sea, by his colleagues or by those that he encounters upon another shore; the experience either makes him or breaks him".Peck, pp. 165-185. Some scholars chose to expand the definition of what constitutes nautical fiction. However, these are inconsistent definitions: some like Bernhard Klein, choose to expand that definition into a thematic perspective, he defines his collection "Fictions of the Sea" around a broader question of the "Britain and the Sea" in literature, which comes to include 16th and 17th maritime instructional literature, and fictional depictions of the nautical which offer lasting cultural resonance, for example Milton's ''

Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consists of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse. A second edition followed in 16 ...

'' and Coleridge's "

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner ''The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'' (originally ''The Rime of the Ancyent Marinere'') is the longest major poem by the English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, written in 1797–1798 and published in 1798 in the first edition of '' Lyrical Ball ...

". Choosing not to fall into this wide of a definition, but also opting to include more fiction than just that which is explicitly about the sea, John Peck opts for a broader maritime fiction, which includes works like

Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...

's '' Mansfield Park'' (1814) and

George Eliot Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrot ...

's '' Daniel Deronda'' (1876), that depict cultural situations dependent on the maritime economy and culture, without explicitly exploring the naval experience.Peck, "Introduction", pp. 1-9. However, as critic Luis Iglasius notes, when defending the genesis of the sea novel genre by James Fenimore Cooper, expanding this definition includes work "tend ngto view the sea from the perspective of the shore" focusing on the effect of a nautical culture on the larger culture or society ashore or focusing on individuals not familiar with nautical life. This article focuses on the sea/nautical novel and avoids broader thematic discussions of nautical topics in culture. In so doing, this article highlights what critics describe as the more conventional definition for the genre, even when they attempt to expand its scope.

History

Sea narratives have a long history of development, arising from cultures with genres of adventure and travel narratives that profiled the sea and its cultural importance, for example

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

epic poem An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. ...

the ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Iliad'', ...

'', the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th ...

poem '' The Seafarer'', The Icelandic

Saga of Eric the Red The ''Saga of Erik the Red'', in non, Eiríks saga rauða (), is an Icelandic saga on the Norse exploration of North America. The original saga is thought to have been written in the 13th century. It is preserved in somewhat different versions ...

(c.1220–1280), or early European

travel narrative The genre of travel literature encompasses outdoor literature, guide books, nature writing, and travel memoirs. One early travel memoirist in Western literature was Pausanias, a Greek geographer of the 2nd century CE. In the early modern pe ...

s like

Richard Hakluyt Richard Hakluyt (; 1553 – 23 November 1616) was an English writer. He is known for promoting the English colonization of North America through his works, notably ''Divers Voyages Touching the Discoverie of America'' (1582) and ''The Pri ...

's (c. 1552–1616) ''Voyages'' (1589).Robert Foulke, ''The Sea Voyage Narrative''. (New York: Routledge, 2002). Then during the 18th century, as Bernhard Klein notes in defining "sea fiction" for his scholarly collection on sea fiction, European cultures began to gain an appreciation of the "sea" through varying thematic lenses. First because of the economic opportunities brought by the sea and then through the influence of the Romantic movement. As early as 1712

Joseph Addison Joseph Addison (1 May 1672 – 17 June 1719) was an English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. He was the eldest son of The Reverend Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend Richar ...

identified "the sea as an archetype of the Sublime in nature: 'of all the objects that I have ever seen, there is none which affects my imagination as much as the sea or ocean' ". Later in this century

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge (; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lak ...

narrative poem Narrative poetry is a form of poetry that tells a story, often using the voices of both a narrator and characters; the entire story is usually written in metered verse. Narrative poems do not need rhyme. The poems that make up this genre may be ...

Rime of the Ancient Mariner ''The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'' (originally ''The Rime of the Ancyent Marinere'') is the longest major poem by the English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, written in 1797–1798 and published in 1798 in the first edition of ''Lyrical Ballad ...

'' (1798), developed the idea of the ocean as "realm of unspoiled nature and a refuge from the perceived threats of civilization".Klein, Bernhard, "Introduction:Britain in the Sea" in Klein, ''Fictions of the Sea'', pp. 1-10. However, it is

Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...

"who has taken most of the credit for inventing the nineteenth-century sea, in ''

Childe Harold's Pilgrimage ''Childe Harold's Pilgrimage'' is a long narrative poem in four parts written by Lord Byron. The poem was published between 1812 and 1818. Dedicated to " Ianthe", it describes the travels and reflections of a world-weary young man, who is disi ...

'' (1812–16): :There is a pleasure in the pathless woods, :There is a rapture on the lonely shore, :There is society where none intrudes, :By the deep Sea and music in its roar.

Early sea novels

A distinct sea novel genre, which focuses on representing nautical culture exclusively, did not gain traction until the early part of the 19th century, however, works dealing with life at sea were written in the 18th century. This includes works dealing with

piracy Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

, such as

Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, trader, journalist, pamphleteer and spy. He is most famous for his novel '' Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its ...

's ''The Life, Adventures & Piracies of the Famous Captain Singleton'' (1720), and ''

A General History of the Pyrates ''A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most notorious Pyrates'' is a 1724 book published in Britain containing biographies of contemporary pirates,

'' (1724), a work which contains biographies of several notorious English pirates such as Blackbeard and

Calico Jack John Rackham (26 December 168218 November 1720), commonly known as Calico Jack, was an English pirate captain operating in the Bahamas and in Cuba during the early 18th century. His nickname was derived from the calico clothing that he wore, whi ...

Tobias Smollett Tobias George Smollett (baptised 19 March 1721 – 17 September 1771) was a Scottish poet and author. He was best known for picaresque novels such as '' The Adventures of Roderick Random'' (1748), '' The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle'' (1751 ...

's '' The Adventures of Roderick Random'', published in 1748, is a

picaresque novel The picaresque novel ( Spanish: ''picaresca'', from ''pícaro'', for "rogue" or "rascal") is a genre of prose fiction. It depicts the adventures of a roguish, but "appealing hero", usually of low social class, who lives by his wits in a corru ...

partially based on Smollett's experience as a naval-surgeon's mate in the British Navy.

19th century

Jonathan Raban suggests that it was the Romantic movement, and especially

, which made "the sea the proper habit for aspiring authors", including the two most prominent early sea fiction writers

and Captain Frederick Marryat, both of whose maritime adventure novels began to define generic expectations about such fiction. Critic Margaret Cohen describes Cooper's ''

'' as the first sea novel and Marryat's adaptation of that style, as continuing to "pioneer" the genre. Critic Luis Iglesias says that novels and fiction that involved the sea before these two authors "tend to view the sea from the perspective of the shore"focusing on the effect of a nautical culture on the larger culture or society ashore or individuals not familiar with nautical life; by example Iglesias points to how Jane Austen's novels don't represent the genre, because, though the sea plays a prominent part in their plots, it keeps actual sea-culture at a "peripheral presence"; similarly, Iglesias describes earlier English novels like ''

Robinson Crusoe ''Robinson Crusoe'' () is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. The first edition credited the work's protagonist Robinson Crusoe as its author, leading many readers to believe he was a real person and the book a tra ...

'' (1719), ''

Moll Flanders ''Moll Flanders'' is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published in 1722. It purports to be the true account of the life of the eponymous Moll, detailing her exploits from birth until old age. By 1721, Defoe had become a recognised novelist, wi ...

'' (1722), or '' Roderick Random'' (1748) as populating the naval world with characters unfamiliar with the sea to better understand land-bound society, not fulfilling the immersive generic expectations of nautical fiction. From the development of the genre's motifs and characteristics in works like Cooper's and Marryat's, a number of notable European novelists, such as

Eugène Sue Marie-Joseph "Eugène" Sue (; 26 January 18043 August 1857) was a French novelist. He was one of several authors who popularized the genre of the serial novel in France with his very popular and widely imitated ''The Mysteries of Paris'', whic ...

, Edouard Corbière, Frederick Chamier and William Glasgock, innovated and explored the genre subsequently. The Pilot A Tale of the Sea

James Fenimore Cooper wrote, what is often described as the first sea novel,This is a debatable claim, dependent on the limitations placed on the genre, per the discussion in the definition section. Margaret Cohen, for example, states that " ter a seventy-five year hiatus, the maritime novel was reinvented by James Fenimore Cooper, with the ''Pilot''". ''The Novel and the Sea''. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2010, p. 133. ''

'' (1824), in response to Walter Scott's '' The Pirate'' (1821).Peck, "American Sea Fiction", in ''Maritime Fiction'', 98-106. Cooper was frustrated with the inaccuracy of the nautical culture represented in that work. Though critical of ''The Pirate'', Cooper borrowed many of the stylistic and thematic elements of the

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other t ...

genre developed by

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy ...

, such as a desire "to map the boundaries and identity of the nation." In both ''

'' and the subsequent '' The Red Rover'' (1827) Cooper explores the development of an American national identity, and in his later '' Afloat and Ashore'' (1844) he again examines the subject of national identity. as well as offering a critique of American politics. Cooper's novels created an interest in sea novels in the United States, and led both

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wid ...

in '' The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym'' (1838) as well as mass-market novelists like Lieutenant Murray Ballou to write novels in the genre. The prominence of the genre also influenced non-fiction. Critic John Peck describe's Richard Henry Dana's ''

Two Years Before the Mast ''Two Years Before the Mast'' is a memoir by the American author Richard Henry Dana Jr., published in 1840, having been written after a two-year sea voyage from Boston to California on a merchant ship starting in 1834. A film adaptation under the ...

'' (1840) as utilizing a similar style and addressing the same thematic issues of national and masculine identity as nautical fiction developing after Cooper's pioneering works. Fenimore Cooper greatly influenced the French novelist

(1804 –1857), whose own his naval experiences supplied much of the materials for Sue's first novels, ''Kernock le pirate'' (1830), ''Atar-Gull'' (1831), the "widely admired" ''La Salamandre'' (1832), ''La Coucaratcha'' (1832–1834), and others, which were composed at the height of the Romantic movement. The more famous French novelist

Alexandre Dumas Alexandre Dumas (, ; ; born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (), 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas père (where '' '' is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer ...

(1802–1870) "made no secret of his admiration for Cooper" and wrote ''Le Capitaine Paul'' (1838) as a sequel to Cooper's ''Pilot''. Another French novelist who had a seafarer background was Edouard Corbière (1793–1875), the author of numerous maritime novels, including ''Les Pilotes de l'Iroise'' (1832), and ''Le Négrier, aventures de mer'', (1834). In Britain, the genesis of a nautical fiction tradition is often attributed to Frederick Marryat. Frederick Marryat's career as a novelist stretched from 1829 until his death in 1848, with many set at sea, including ''

''.Susan Bassnett "Cabin'd Yet Unconfined: Heroic Masculinity in English Seafaring Novels" in Klein Fictions of the Sea'' Adapting Cooper's approach to fiction, Marryat's sea novels also reflected his own experience in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

during the

Napoleonic wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fre ...

, in part under the command of Thomas Cochrane—who would also later inspire Patrick O'Brian's character Jack Aubrey. Thematically Marryat focuses on ideas of heroism, proper action of officers, and reforms within the culture of the navy. Marryat's literary works participate in a larger British cultural examination of maritime service during the early part of the 19th century, where subjects such as naval discipline and naval funding were in widespread public debate. Peck describes Marryat's novels as consistent in their core thematic focuses on masculinity and the contemporary naval culture, and in doing so, he suggests, they provide a complex reflection on "a complex historical moment in which author, in his clumsy way, engages with rapid change in Britain." Marryat's novels encouraged the writing of other novels from veterans of the Napoleonic wars during the 1830s, like M.H. Baker, Captain Chamier, Captain Glascock, Edward Howard, and William J. Neale; these authors frequently both reflect on and defend the public image of the navy.Peck, pp. 50-69. Novels by these authors highlight a more conservative, and supportive view of the navy, unlike texts from those interested in reforming the navy, like Nautical Economy; or forecastle recollections of events during the last war, which were critical of naval disciplinary practices, during a period when public debates ensued around various social and political reform movements. Marryat's novels tend to be treated as unique in comparison to these other works however; Peck argues that Marryat's novels, though in part supportive of the navy, also highlight a "disturbing dimension" of the navy.

Late 19th century

As the model of the sea novel solidified into a distinct genre, writers in both Europe and the United States produced major works of literature in the genre, for example Melville's ''

Moby-Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is the sailor Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship ''Pequod'', for revenge against Moby Dick, the giant whi ...

'',

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

's '' Toilers of the Sea'' and Joseph Conrad's ''

Heart of Darkness ''Heart of Darkness'' (1899) is a novella by Polish-English novelist Joseph Conrad in which the sailor Charles Marlow tells his listeners the story of his assignment as steamer captain for a Belgian company in the African interior. The no ...

'' and ''

''. John Peck describes Herman Mellville and Joseph Conrad as the "two great English-language writers of sea stories": better novelists than predecessors Cooper and Marryat, both flourished writing in the "

adventure novel Adventure fiction is a type of fiction that usually presents danger, or gives the reader a sense of excitement. Some adventure fiction also satisfies the literary definition of romance fiction. History In the Introduction to the ''Encycloped ...

" genre.Peck, pp. 107-126. Moreover, unlike the earlier novels, which were written during a thriving nautical economic boom, full of opportunities and affirmation of national identity, novels by these authors were written "at a point where a maritime based economic order asdisintegrating." The genre also inspired a number of popular mass-market authors, like American

Ned Buntline Edward Zane Carroll Judson Sr. (March 20, 1821 – July 16, 1886), known by his pseudonym Ned Buntline, was an American publisher, journalist, and writer. Early life and military service Judson was born on March 20, 1821, in Harpersfield, New ...

, Britain

Charles Kingsley Charles Kingsley (12 June 1819 – 23 January 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, the worki ...

and Frenchman

Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the '' Voyages extra ...

. Mellville's fiction frequently involves the sea, with his first five novels following the naval adventures of seamen, often a pair of male friends ('' Typee'' (1846), ''

Omoo ''Omoo: A Narrative of Adventures in the South Seas'' is the second book by American writer Herman Melville, first published in London in 1847, and a sequel to his first South Sea narrative '' Typee'', also based on the author's experiences in th ...

'' (1847), ''

Mardi ''Mardi: and a Voyage Thither'' is the third book by American writer Herman Melville, first published in London in 1849. Beginning as a travelogue in the vein of the author's two previous efforts, the adventure story gives way to a romance story, ...

'' (1849), ''

Redburn ''Redburn: His First Voyage'' is the fourth book by the American writer Herman Melville, first published in London in 1849. The book is semi-autobiographical and recounts the adventures of a refined youth among coarse and brutal sailors and the s ...

'' (1849) and ''

White-Jacket ''White-Jacket; or, The World in a Man-of-War'' is the fifth book by American writer Herman Melville, first published in London in 1850. The book is based on the author's fourteen months' service in the United States Navy, aboard the frigate USS ' ...

'' (1850) ). However, ''

'' is his most important work, sometimes called the

Great American Novel The Great American Novel (sometimes abbreviated as GAN) is a canonical novel that is thought to embody the essence of America, generally written by an American and dealing in some way with the question of America's national character. The te ...

, it was also named "the greatest book of the sea ever written" by D.H. Lawrence. In this work, the hunting of a whale by Captain Ahab, immerses the narrator Ishmael in a spiritual journey, a theme which is developed again in Conrad's much later ''

''. The importance of naval power in maintaining Britains' vast worldwide empire led to numerous novels with nautical themes.Peck, "Mid-Victorian Maritime Fiction", pp. 127–148. Some of these just touch on the sea, as with ''

Sylvia's Lovers ''Sylvia's Lovers'' (1863) is a novel written by Elizabeth Gaskell, which she called "the saddest story I ever wrote". Plot summary The novel begins in the 1790s in the coastal town of Monkshaven (modeled on Whitby, England) against the backgro ...

'' (1863) by Elizabeth Gaskell, where the nautical world is a foil to the social life ashore. However, British novelists increasingly focused on the sea in the 19th century, particular when they focus on the upper classes. In such works sea voyages became a place for strong social commentary, as, for example Trollope's '' John Caldigate'' (1877), in which Trollope depicts a character travelling to Australia to make his fortune, and Wilkie Collins's '' Armadale'' (1866), which follows gentlemen yachting. Likewise

William Clark Russell William Clark Russell (24 February 18448 November 1911) was an English writer best known for his nautical novels. At the age of 13 Russell joined the United Kingdom's Merchant Navy, serving for eight years. The hardships of life at sea damage ...

's novels, especially the first two, '' John Holdsworth, Chief Mate'' (1875) and '' The Wreck of the Grosvenor'' (1877), both of which highlight the social anxieties of Victorian Britain. At the same time that literary works embraced the sea narrative in Britain, so did the most popular novels of adventure fiction, of which Marryat is a major example. Critic John Peck emphasises this subgenre's impact on boys' books. In these novels young male characters go through—often morally whitewashed—experiences of adventure, romantic entanglement, and "domestic commitment".

is the most definitive writers of this genre, writing over one hundred boys' books, "many with a maritime theme", including '' Westward Ho!''.Peck, pp. 149-164. Other authors include R. M. Ballantyne, ''

The Coral Island ''The Coral Island: A Tale of the Pacific Ocean'' (1857) is a novel written by Scottish author . One of the first works of juvenile fiction to feature exclusively juvenile heroes, the story relates the adventures of three boys marooned on a ...

'' (1858), G.A. Henty, '' Under Drake's Flag'' (1882),

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as '' Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll ...

, ''

Treasure Island ''Treasure Island'' (originally titled ''The Sea Cook: A Story for Boys''Hammond, J. R. 1984. "Treasure Island." In ''A Robert Louis Stevenson Companion'', Palgrave Macmillan Literary Companions. London: Palgrave Macmillan. .) is an adventure no ...

'' (1883), and

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)'' The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

, ''

Captains Courageous ''Captains Courageous: A Story of the Grand Banks'' is an 1897 novel by Rudyard Kipling that follows the adventures of fifteen-year-old Harvey Cheyne Jr., the spoiled son of a railroad tycoon, after he is saved from drowning by a Portuguese f ...

'' (1897), all of which were also read by adults, and helped expand the potential of naval adventure fiction. Other novels by Stevenson, including ''

Kidnapped Kidnapped may refer to: * subject to the crime of kidnapping Literature * ''Kidnapped'' (novel), an 1886 novel by Robert Louis Stevenson * ''Kidnapped'' (comics), a 2007 graphic novel adaptation of R. L. Stevenson's novel by Alan Grant and Cam ...

'', ''

Catriona Catriona (pronounced "ka-TREE-nah" is a feminine given name in the English language. It is an Anglicisation of the Irish Caitríona or Scottish Gaelic Catrìona, which are forms of the English Katherine. Bearers of the name Caitríona * Ca ...

'', '' The Master of Ballantrae'', and '' The Ebb-Tide'' (co-authored with Lloyd Osbourne) have significant scenes aboard ships.

The 20th and 21st centuries

Twentieth century novelists expand on the earlier traditions. The

modernist Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

drew inspiration from a range of earlier nautical works like

's '' Toilers of the Sea'' (1866), and

Leopold McClintock Sir Francis Leopold McClintock (8 July 1819 – 17 November 1907) was an Irish explorer in the British Royal Navy, known for his discoveries in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. He confirmed explorer John Rae's controversial report gather ...

's book about his 1857–59 expeditions in search of Sir

John Franklin Sir John Franklin (16 April 1786 – 11 June 1847) was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. After serving in wars against Napoleonic France and the United States, he led two expeditions into the Canadian Arctic and through t ...

's lost ships, as well as works by

and Frederick Marryat. Most of Conrad's works draw directly from this seafaring career: Conrad had a career in both the French and British merchant marine, climbing to the rank of captain. His most famous novel, ''

'' (1899), is based on a three-year employment with a Belgian trading company. His other nautical fiction includes ''

An Outcast of the Islands ''An Outcast of the Islands'' is the second novel by Joseph Conrad, published in 1896, inspired by Conrad's experience as mate of a steamer, the ''Vidar''. The novel details the undoing of Peter Willems, a disreputable, immoral man who, on the ...

'' (1896) '' The Nigger of the 'Narcissus''' (1897), ''

'' (1900), ''

Typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

'' (1902), '' Chance'' (1913), '' The Rescue'' (1920), '' The Rover'' (1923). A number of other novelists started writing nautical fiction early in the century.

Jack London John Griffith Chaney (January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to ...

's '' The Sea Wolf'' (1904), was influenced by Kipling's recently published ''

'' (1897). Welsh novelist Richard Hughes (1900–1976) wrote only four novels, the most famous of which is the pirate adventure, '' A High Wind in Jamaica''. He also wrote ''In Hazard'' (1938) about a merchant ship caught in a hurricane. English poet and novelist

John Masefield John Edward Masefield (; 1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967) was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate from 1930 until 1967. Among his best known works are the children's novels ''The Midnight Folk'' and ''The Box of Delights'', and the poem ...

(1878–1967), who had himself served at sea, wrote ''The Bird of Dawning'' (1933), relating the adventures of the crew of a China tea clipper, who are forced to abandon ship and take to the boats. The novels of two other prominent British sea novelists, C.S. Forester (1899–1966) and

(1914–2000), define the conventional boundaries of contemporary naval fiction. A number of later authors draw on Forester's and O'Brian's models of representing individual officers or sailors as they progress through their careers in the British navy, including Alexander Kent and Dudley Pope. Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series straddles the divide between popular and

literary fiction Literary fiction, mainstream fiction, non-genre fiction or serious fiction is a label that, in the book trade, refers to market novels that do not fit neatly into an established genre (see genre fiction); or, otherwise, refers to novels that are ch ...

, distinguishing itself from Hornblower, one reviewer even commented the books have "escaped the usual confines of naval adventure . .attract ngnew readers who wouldn’t touch Horatio Hornblower with a bargepole." There are also reviews that compare these works to

and similar authors. though this is not a universally held opinion. Several other notable authors, wrote contemporary to O'Brian and Forester, but expanded the boundaries of the genre. Nicholas Monsarrat's novel '' The Cruel Sea'' (1951) follows a young naval officer Keith Lockhart during World War II service aboard "small ships". Monsarrat's short-story collections ''H.M.S. Marlborough Will Enter Harbour'' (1949), and ''The Ship That Died of Shame'' (1959) previously made into a film of the same name, mined the same literary vein, and gained popularity by association with ''The Cruel Sea''. Another important British novelist who wrote about life at sea was

William Golding Sir William Gerald Golding (19 September 1911 – 19 June 1993) was a British novelist, playwright, and poet. Best known for his debut novel '' Lord of the Flies'' (1954), he published another twelve volumes of fiction in his lifetime. In 198 ...

(1911–1993). His novel '' Pincher Martin'' (1956) records the delusions experienced by a drowning sailor in his last moments. Golding's

postmodern Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or Rhetorical modes, mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by philosophical skepticism, skepticis ...

ist trilogy ''

To the Ends of the Earth ''To the Ends of the Earth'' is the title given to a trilogy of nautical, relational novels—''Rites of Passage'' (1980), ''Close Quarters'' (1987), and ''Fire Down Below'' (1989)—by British author William Golding. Set on a former British ...

'' is about sea voyages to Australia in the early nineteenth century, and draws extensively on the traditions of Jane Austen, Joseph Conrad and Herman Melville, and is Golding's most extensive piece of

historiographic metafiction Historiographic metafiction is a term coined by Canadian literary theorist Linda Hutcheon in the late 1980s. It incorporates three domains: fiction, history, and theory. Concept The term is used for works of fiction which combine the literary dev ...

. Four of

Arthur Ransome Arthur Michell Ransome (18 January 1884 – 3 June 1967) was an English author and journalist. He is best known for writing and illustrating the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series of children's books about the school-holiday adventures of childre ...

’s children's novels in the Swallows and Amazons series (published 1930–1947) involve sailing at sea (''

Peter Duck ''Peter Duck'' is the third book in the ''Swallows and Amazons'' series by Arthur Ransome. The Swallows and Amazons sail to Crab Island with Captain Flint and Peter Duck, an old sailor, to recover buried treasure. During the voyage the ''Wildcat ...

, We Didn't Mean To Go To Sea,

Missee Lee ''Missee Lee'' is the tenth book of Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons series of children's books, set in 1930s China. The Swallows and Amazons are on a round-the-world trip with Captain Flint aboard the schooner ''Wild Cat''. After the ''Wil ...

and Great Northern?''). The others are about sailing small boats in the

Lake District The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests, and mountains (or '' fells''), and its associations with William Wordswor ...

or on the Norfolk Broads. Two short stories in Coots in the North are about sailing on a yacht in the Baltic: ''The Unofficial Side'' and ''Two Shorts and a Long.'' Swedish novelist Frans G. Bengtsson became widely known for his

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

saga novel ''Röde Orm'' ('' The Long Ships''), published in two parts in 1941 and 1945. The hero Orm, later called Röde Orm (Red Snake) because of his red beard, is kidnapped as a boy onto a raiding ship and leads an exciting life in the Mediterranean area around the year 1000 AD. Later, he makes an expedition eastward into what is now Russia. ''The Long Ships'' was later adapted into a film. Authors continue writing nautical fiction in the twenty-first century, including, for example, another Scandinavian, Danish novelist

Carsten Jensen Carsten Jensen (born 24 July 1952, Marstal, Denmark) is a Danish author and political columnist. He first earned recognition as a literary critic for the Copenhagen daily, ''Politiken.'' His novels, including ''I Have Seen the World Begin'' (199 ...

's (1952–) epic novel ''We, the drowned'' (2006) describes life on both sea and land from the beginning of Danish-Prussian War in 1848 to the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The novel focuses on the Danish seaport of

Marstal Marstal () is a town in southern Denmark, located in Ærø Municipality on the island of Ærø. Marstal has a population of 2,120 (1 January 2022)Ærø, and voyages by the town's seamen all over the globe.Book review: Carsten Jensen's 'We, the Drowned' by Peter Behrens, February 22, 201

/ref>

Common themes

Masculinity and heroism

Those nautical novels dealing with life on naval and merchant ships set in the past are often written by men and deal with a purely male world with the rare exception, and a core themes found in these novels is male heroism. orig. presented at the 2000 Central New York Conference on Language and Literature, Cortland, N.Y This creates a generic expectation among readers and publishers. Critic Jerome de Groot identifies naval historical fiction, like Forester's and O'Brian's, as epitomizing the kinds of fiction marketed to men, and nautical fiction being one of the subgenre's most frequently marketed towards men. As John Peck notes, the genre of nautical fiction frequently relies on a more "traditional models of masculinity", where masculinity is a part of a more conservative social order. Capture of the El Gamo

However, as the genre has developed, models of masculinity and the nature of male heroism in sea novels vary greatly, despite being based on similar historical precedents like Thomas Cochrane (nicknamed the "Sea Wolf"), whose heroic exploits have been adapted by Marryat, Forestor, and O'Brian, among others. Susan Bassnet maps a change in the major popular nautical works. On the one hand Marryat's heroes focus on gentlemanly characteristics modeled on idealized ideas of actual captains such as Thomas Cochrane and

Horatio Nelson Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte (29 September 1758 – 21 October 1805) was a British flag officer in the Royal Navy. His inspirational leadership, grasp of strategy, and unconventional tactics brought a ...

. On the other hand, Forester's Hornblower is a model hero, presenting bravery, but inadequate at life ashore and beyond the navy and with limited emotional complexity. More recently O'Brian has explored complex ideas about masculinities through his characters Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin's friendship, along with the tension between naval life and shore life, and these men's complex passions and character flaws. Bassnett argues, these models of manliness frequently reflect the historical contexts in which authors write. Marryat's model is a direct political response to the reforms of the Navy and the Napoleonic Wars, while Forrestor is writing about post-

Britain, and O'Brian is exploring the social and scholarly complexities of the later part of the 20th century. Like O'Brian's novels, other 20th century authors treat masculinity as a complex plurality, full of questions about the idea of

maleness Male (symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization. A male organism cannot reproduce sexually without access to a ...

. For example, William Golding's ''To the Ends of the Earth'' trilogy, explores the complexities of what constitutes a stable and acceptable male role as the civilian main character is thrust into the militaristic world of the navy, and is forced to work out afresh his own ideas of manhood. Though much of the tradition focuses on a militaristic storytelling, some of the prototypes of the genre focus on a commercial naval heritage but continue to highlight the role of masculinity and heroism with that tradition. For example, Iglesias describes Coopers novels and the subsequent novels in the American tradition growing out of "a distinctive attitude borne of commercial enterprise, confronting and ultimately superseding its Atlantic rival." Only one of his novels, The Two Admirals, describes order of battle. Yet, the investigation of masculinity is central to the novels; Critic Steven Hathorn describes "Cooper deliberately invests his nautical world with a masculine character, to such a degree that the appearance of women aboard ships presents an array of problems ��the novels explore how some of the biggest challenges to manhood come from within—from the very nature of masculinity itself." James Fenimore Cooper's ''The Pilot'' questions the role of nautical symbols of heroes of the revolutionary period, such as

John Paul Jones John Paul Jones (born John Paul; July 6, 1747 July 18, 1792) was a Scottish-American naval captain who was the United States' first well-known naval commander in the American Revolutionary War. He made many friends among U.S political elites ( ...

, and their unsavory naval practices while privateering.

Women at sea

'Dick Sand, A Captain at Fifteen' by Henri Meyer 033

Although contemporary sea culture includes women working as fishers and even commanding naval ships, maritime fiction on the whole has not followed this cultural change."Women in the Royal Navy serve in many roles; as pilots, observers and air-crew personnel; as divers, and Commanding Officers of HM Ships and shore establishments, notably Cdr Sarah West, who took up her appointment as CO of HMS PORTLAND in 2012, taking her ship from a refit in Rosyth to her current deployment as an Atlantic Patrol vessel. In another milestone for the Royal Navy, Commander Sue Moore was the first woman to command a squadron of minor war vessels; the First Patrol Boat Squadron (1PBS) ... Women can serve in the Royal Marines but not as RM Commandos.

for women as crew in the fishing industry, see "Women in Fish harvesting

/ref> Generally, in maritime fiction, women only have a role on passenger ships, as wives of warrant officers, and where the plot is on land. An example of a woman aboard a ship is Joseph Conrad's '' Chance'' (1913), where in the final section Captain Anthony takes his younger bride to sea with him and the captain's "obsessive passion" disturbs "the normal working relations of the ship". James Hanley (novelist), James Hanley's ''Captain Bottell'' closely parallels Conrad's work, though here Captain Bottell's obsession is with a government official's wife. This causes him to descend into madness, leaving the crew struggling "heroically to keep the ship afloat" during a storm. Critic John Fordham sees Hanley's novel as "a conscious anti-romantic attack" on ''Chance''. There are, however, stories of women dressed as men serving at sea. In 1815, American Louisa Baker supposedly wrote '' The Female Marine; or the Adventures of Louisa Baker'' a narrative about her life aboard the USS Constitution as a warning to other young women. The book was widely read and accepted as fact, but historians now believe that Louisa Baker never existed, and that her story was created by publisher Nathaniel Coverly, Jr., and written by Nathan Hill Wright. The story was so popular that a sequel, ''The Adventures of Lucy Brown'', was published. The success of this further inspired Nathaniel Coverly, Jr., to publish another tale of a female sailor, ''The Surprising Adventures of Almira Paul'', in 1816. Again historians doubt that the book, which is full of fantastic adventure, danger, and romance, is really an autobiography of Almira Paul of

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. Th ...

, and what it is more likely is that the story was based on the lives of real women such as Hannah Snell and Mary Anne Talbot—women who defied convention to live life on their own terms.

Star-Crossed "Star-crossed" or "star-crossed lovers" is a phrase describing a pair of lovers who, for some external reason, cannot be together. The term also has other meanings, but originally means that the pairing is being "thwarted by a malign star" or ...

(Alfred A. Knopf, 2006) by Linda Collison, and the subsequent Barbados Bound, Book 1 of the Patricia MacPherson Nautical Adventure Series is historical fiction, which were inspired by the documented occurrences of actual women who served aboard ship as men. Early in the nineteenth century

Captain Marryat Captain Frederick Marryat (10 July 1792 – 9 August 1848) was a Royal Navy officer, a novelist, and an acquaintance of Charles Dickens. He is noted today as an early pioneer of nautical fiction, particularly for his semi-autobiographical novel ...

's ''Frank Mildhay'' (1829) explores an important part of sailor's life ashore, their sexual encounters. John Peck, in ''Maritime Fiction'' comments that Frank's "encounters with prostitutes and a relationship with an actress resulting in a child are not what might be expected", that is he is not "the kind of honest lad', the kind of midshipmen portrayed by

or "who well be at the centre of Marryat's ''Mr Midshipman Easy'' ". Peck further suggests that in "Marryat's navy there is" both "contempt for" and "fear of women". ''The Saturday Evening Post'' in the late 1920s ran a series of short stories about "Tugboat Annie" Brennan, a widow who ran a tugboat and successfully competed for a share of the towboat business in

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected m ...

. Annie and her crew also did some crime fighting and helped people caught in storms and floods. The series was extremely popular and there were two films and a television show that were based on it. Harcourt published L.A. Meyer's '' Bloody Jack'' (2002), the first novel in the young adult fiction series set in the early 19th century centering around the titular character Mary (Jacky) Faber. The first adventure featured Jacky disguised as a cabin boy aboard a British naval ship. The eleven subsequent titles feature other maritime or river adventures, with reference to and direct inspiration from nautical culture, historical events and people, tall tales and classic nautical fiction.

The working class at sea

Until the 20th century nautical fiction focused on officer protagonists and John Peck suggests, that "the idea of the gentleman is absolutely central in maritime fiction".''Maritime Fiction'', p. 172. However, historically, the bulk of people aboard nautical voyages are common sailors, drawn from the working classes. An early, somewhat disapproving, portrait of ordinary seamen is found in

's fourth novel '' Redburn: His First Voyage: Being the Sailor-boy Confessions and Reminiscences of the Son-of-a-Gentleman, in the Merchant Service'', published in 1849, Melville's semi-autobiographical account of the adventures of a refined youth among coarse and brutal sailors and the seedier areas of

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

. In June 1839 Melville had signed aboard the merchant ship ''St. Lawrence'' as a "boy" (a green hand) for a cruise from New York to

. He returned on the same ship on the first of October, after five weeks in England.

's novella '' The Nigger of the 'Narcissus''' (1897) about a black sailor from the West Indies was first published in America as ''The Children of the Sea: A Tale of the Forecastle.'' However, it was not until the twentieth century that sea stories "of men for'ard of the bridge" really developed, starting with American playwright

Eugene O'Neill Eugene Gladstone O'Neill (October 16, 1888 – November 27, 1953) was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into the U.S. the drama techniques of realism, earli ...

's SS Glencairn one act plays written 1913–17, and his full-length play '' The Hairy Ape'' (1922). The latter is an

expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radi ...

play about a brutish, unthinking laborer known as Yank as he searches for a sense of belonging in a world controlled by the rich. At first Yank feels secure as he stokes the engines of an ocean liner, and is highly confident in his physical power over the ship's engines, but later he undergoes a crisis of identity. O'Neill spent several years at sea, and he joined the Marine Transport Workers Union of the

Industrial Workers of the World The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), members of which are commonly termed "Wobblies", is an international labor union that was founded in Chicago in 1905. The origin of the nickname "Wobblies" is uncertain. IWW ideology combines general ...

(IWW), which was fighting for improved living conditions for the

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

utilizing quick "on the job" direct action. O'Neill was a major influence on a number of subsequent writers of nautical fiction, like James Hanley and George Garrett. The 1930s saw the publication of a number of short stories and novels about life of seamen below deck, some written by adventure seekers from wealthy families, like Melville and O'Neill, and others from the working class, who had gone to sea out of necessity. Moneyed

Malcolm Lowry Clarence Malcolm Lowry (; 28 July 1909 – 26 June 1957) was an English poet and novelist who is best known for his 1947 novel ''Under the Volcano'', which was voted No. 11 in the Modern Library 100 Best Novels list.

was "driven to the docks in the family limousine", when he was eighteen to begin a voyage "as deck hand, cabin boy and ultimately a fireman's helper on a tramp steamer". From this experience as a common seaman came Lowry's novel ''

Ultramarine Ultramarine is a deep blue color pigment which was originally made by grinding lapis lazuli into a powder. The name comes from the Latin ''ultramarinus'', literally 'beyond the sea', because the pigment was imported into Europe from mines in Afg ...

'' (1933), a work influenced by Nordahl Grieg's '' The Ship Sails On'' and

Conrad Aiken Conrad Potter Aiken (August 5, 1889 – August 17, 1973) was an American writer and poet, honored with a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award, and was United States Poet Laureate from 1950 to 1952. His published works include poetry, short ...

's '' Blue Voyage''.

Working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

writers who describe experiences in the merchant navy include, James Hanley (novelist), James Hanley, Jim Phelan, George Garrett,

John Sommerfield John Sommerfield (25 June 1908 – 13 August 1991) was a British writer and left-wing activist known for his influential novel ''May Day'', which fictionalised a Communist upheaval in 1930s London. Sommerfield volunteered to fight in the Spani ...

('' They Die Young'' (1930),),

Liam O'Flaherty Liam O'Flaherty ( ; 28 August 1896 – 7 September 1984) was an Irish novelist and short-story writer, and one of the foremost socialist writers in the first part of the 20th century, writing about the common people's experience and from their ...

and B. Traven. Writing about the men below decks required a different approach. For example, James Hanley describes Traven's '' Death Ship'' (1934), as "the first ''real'' book about the lives for'ard of the bridge".James Hanley, "Sugi–Mugi" review of B. Traven's ''Death Ship''. The novel portrays what Hanley calls the "real, horrible, fantastic, but disgustingly true". Hanley's own early novel ''Boy'' has been described as "truly disturbing novel", and explores sexual abuse of a teenage youth aboard a cargo ship.Ken Worpole, ''Dockers and Detectives'', p. 83. According to Paul Lester the "opening pages of Jim Phelan's ''Ten-A-Pennry People'', resembles ''Boy''", and this novel continues with details of how life as a stoker "will destroy a man physically". George Garrett in his short stories also wrote "about life among harsh realities" on both land and at sea. The works of these writer diverges greatly from earlier writers who use more romantic depictions of upper-class men at sea, like Fenimore Cooper, Melville (even ''Redburn'') and Joseph Conrad, depicting what critic

Alan Ross Alan John Ross (6 May 1922 – 14 February 2001) was a British poet, writer, editor and publisher. Early years Ross was born in Calcutta, India, son of John Brackenridge Ross, CBE, a former Lieutenant in the Indian Army Reserve ( Supply and T ...

called men generally "found covered in grease below decks". Garrett wrote, that " onradcould write romantically and vividly of a ship in heavy sea, but when it came to men aboard he wrote as a conservatively-minded officer", and criticizes Conrad's depiction of the sailor Donkin as a villain in his novella ''Nigger of the Narcissus''. Japanese authors have also explored working-men's life at sea. '' Takiji Kobayashi's K'sanikōsen'' (1929) (''The Crab Cannery Ship'', 2013)) describes the exploitation of Japanese crab fishermen by ship owners from a

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

point-of-view. The book has been made into a film and

manga Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is ...

. While

Right-wing Right-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that view certain social orders and Social stratification, hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this pos ...

novelist

Yukio Mishima , born , was a Japanese author, poet, playwright, actor, model, Shintoist, nationalist, and founder of the , an unarmed civilian militia. Mishima is considered one of the most important Japanese authors of the 20th century. He was considered fo ...

, in his novel ''Gogo no Eikō'' (1963) ('' The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea'',1965), chronicles the story of Ryuji, a sailor with vague notions that a special honor awaiting him at sea.

Life ashore

Another aspect of sailors' lives is their experiences of sailortown, that area of public houses, brothels, lodgings, etc., close to the docks which caters to their needs away from home. Herman Melville describes in ''

's sailortown. There are also works that deal with their experiences in their home port and those of their families ashore.

's ''Vi, de druknede'' (''We, the drowned'', 2006) not only deals with men at sea but also encompasses the lives of boys growing up with dreams of becoming sailors and the experiences of the wives – and widows – of the seamen. James Hanley is another author who explores not only life afloat but the experiences of them and their families on land, especially in his series of five novels

The Furys Chronicle ''The Furys Chronicle'' is a sequence of five novels, published between 1935 and 1958, by James Hanley (1897–1985). The main setting is the fictional, northern, English town of Gelton, which is based on Liverpool, where Hanley was born, and inv ...

Slave ships

While many maritime novels focus on adventure and heroic deeds, the prime function of ships, other than warfare, is the making of money. The darkest aspect of this, involving both greed and cruelty is seen in the slave trade: "The story of Britain's involvement in the slave trade echoes the profit versus morality debate that is present in so many maritime novels".'' Sacred Hunger'' (1992) is a historical novel by

Barry Unsworth Barry Unsworth FRSL (10 August 19304 June 2012) was an English writer known for his historical fiction. He published 17 novels, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize three times, winning once for the 1992 novel '' Sacred Hunger''. Biograph ...

(1930–2012), which is set in the mid 18th century in the English sea port of

and aboard the ''Liverpool Merchant'' a

slave ship Slave ships were large cargo ships specially built or converted from the 17th to the 19th century for transporting slaves. Such ships were also known as "Guineamen" because the trade involved human trafficking to and from the Guinea coast ...

. The novel's central theme is greed, with the subject of

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

being a primary medium for exploring the issue. The story line has a very extensive cast of characters, and the narrative interweaves elements of appalling cruelty and horror with extended comic interludes. It shared, in 1992, the

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

that year with

Michael Ondaatje Philip Michael Ondaatje (; born 12 September 1943) is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian poet, fiction writer, essayist, novelist, editor, and filmmaker. He is the recipient of multiple literary awards such as the Governor General's Award, the Giller P ...

's ''

The English Patient ''The English Patient'' is a 1992 novel by Michael Ondaatje. The book follows four dissimilar people brought together at an Italian villa during the Italian Campaign of the Second World War. The four main characters are: an unrecognisably burn ...

''. A sequel, ''The Quality of Mercy'', Unsworth's last book, was published in 2011. Greed and man's inhumanity to his fellows is also the subject of Fred D'Aguiar's third novel, ''Feeding the Ghosts'' (1997), which was inspired by the true story of the ''Zong'' massacre in which 132 slaves were thrown from a

into the Atlantic for insurance purposes. According to historical accounts, one slave survived and climbed back onto the ship; and in D'Aguiar's narrative this slave – about whom there is next to no historical information – is developed as the fictional character Mintah.

Passenger ships

The importance of "the idea of the gentleman" can also be a theme of novels set on passenger ships, as for example with

Anthony Trollope Anthony Trollope (; 24 April 1815 – 6 December 1882) was an English novelist and civil servant of the Victorian era. Among his best-known works is a series of novels collectively known as the '' Chronicles of Barsetshire'', which revolves ar ...

's novel ''John Caldigate''. Several chapters of this novel deal with the eponymous hero's voyage to Australia. While Trollope claims "that life at sea is unlike life in general" the novel, in fact, presents "an intensified version of ordinary life, with social divisions rigorously enforced" which is underlined by "the physical separation of first- and second-class passengers". While

's novel '' Rites of Passage'' (1980) is set on board a warship the ship is also carrying a number of passengers on their way to Australia, who encompass a motley yet representative collection of early 19th century English society. Class division, or the assumption of a higher status than is warranted, is a running theme of the book. This theme focuses upon that major theme of maritime fiction, the proper conduct of a gentleman; however, it also deals with his often-stormy friendship between the protagonist Talbot and one of the officers, Lieutenant Summers, who sometimes feels slighted by Talbot's ill-thought-out comments and advice. Like many of Golding's books, it also looks at man's reversion to savagery in the wake of isolation. This novel forms the trilogy ''

'', with ''

Close Quarters Overcrowding or crowding is the condition where more people are located within a given space than is considered tolerable from a safety and health perspective. Safety and health perspectives depend on current environments and on local cultural n ...

'' (1987) and '' Fire Down Below'' (1989).

Beryl Bainbridge Dame Beryl Margaret Bainbridge (21 November 1932 – 2 July 2010) was an English writer from Liverpool. She was primarily known for her works of psychological fiction, often macabre tales set among the English working class. Bainbridge won the ...

deals with the sinking of the RMS ''Titanic'' in '' Every Man for Himself'', which won the 1996 Whitbread Prize, and was a nominee of the

. It also won the 1997 Commonwealth Writers' Prize (Europe and South Asia). Sometimes, as with

Katherine Anne Porter Katherine Anne Porter (May 15, 1890 – September 18, 1980) was an American journalist, essayist, short story writer, novelist, and political activist. Her 1962 novel ''Ship of Fools'' was the best-selling novel in America that year, but her sh ...

's ''

Ship of Fools The ship of fools is an allegory, originating from Book VI of Plato's ''Republic'', about a ship with a dysfunctional crew. The allegory is intended to represent the problems of governance prevailing in a political system not based on expert kn ...

'' (1962), a ship can be a symbol: "if thought of as isolated in the midst of the ocean, a ship can stand for mankind and human society moving through time and struggling with its destiny." Set in 1931 ''Ship of Fools'' is an

allegory As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a hidden meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory t ...

that traces the rise of

Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...

and looks metaphorically at the progress of the world on its "voyage to eternity" in the years leading to

. The novel tells the tale of a group of disparate characters sailing from

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

to Europe aboard a German passenger ship. The large cast of characters includes Germans, a Swiss family, Mexicans, Americans, Spaniards, a group of Cuban medical students, and a Swede. In steerage there are 876 Spanish workers being returned from Cuba. Porter's title alludes to ''

'' (1494) by

Sebastian Brant Sebastian Brant (also Brandt) (1458 – 10 May 1521) was a German humanist and satirist. He is best known for his satire ''Das Narrenschiff'' (''The Ship of Fools''). Biography Brant was born in Strasbourg to an innkeeper but eventually ente ...

, which is an

, originating from

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...

, The allegory depicts a vessel without a pilot, populated by human inhabitants who are deranged, frivolous, or oblivious, and seemingly ignorant of their course. The concept makes up the framework of the 15th century book which served as the inspiration for

Hieronymous Bosch Hieronymus Bosch (, ; born Jheronimus van Aken ; – 9 August 1516) was a Dutch/ Netherlandish painter from Brabant. He is one of the most notable representatives of the Early Netherlandish painting school. His work, generally oil on oa ...

's famous painting, ''

'': a ship—an entire fleet at first—sets off from Basel, bound for the Paradise of Fools.

Nautical detail and language

A distinction between nautical fiction and other fiction merely using the sea as a setting or backdrop is an investment in nautical detail. Luis Iglesias describes James Fenimore Cooper's use in ''

'' of nautical language and "faithful ..descriptions of nautical maneuvers and the vernacular expression of seafaring men" as reinforcing his work's authority for the reader, and as giving more credence to characters, which distinguishes it from earlier fiction set on or around the sea.

Other notable works

Novels

Notable exponents of the sea novel not discussed above.This list includes some of the notable authors covered by Wikipedia. For a more expansive list of notable authors and works, see the Wikipedia :Nautical historical novelists. Others not included in Wikipedia can be found a
Historical Naval Fiction
(though this list focuses only on "Age of Sail" fiction) o

More specific thematic lists, includ

* Alain-René Le Sage (1668–1747): ''Vie et aventures de M. de Beauchesne'' (1733) *

Abbé Prévost Antoine François Prévost d'Exiles ( , , ; 1 April 169725 November 1763), usually known simply as the Abbé Prévost, was a French priest, author, and novelist. Life and works He was born at Hesdin, Artois, and first appears with the full nam ...

(1697–1763): ''Voyages du Capitaine Robert Lade'' (1744) *

William Cardell William Samuel Cardell (November 27, 1780 – August 10, 1828) was an early American fiction writer and scholar. He is best remembered for his sea stories for boys, which combined adventure tales with moral instruction. ''The Story of Jack Haly ...

(1780–1828): ''The Story of Jack Halyard'' and other works (1824) * Pierre Loti (1850–1923) '' My Brother Yves'' (1883); '' An Iceland Fisherman'' (1886) * Erskine Childers (1870–1922): '' The Riddle of the Sands'' (1903) *

Rafael Sabatini Rafael Sabatini (29 April 1875 – 13 February 1950) was an Italian-born British writer of romance and adventure novels. He is best known for his worldwide bestsellers: '' The Sea Hawk'' (1915), ''Scaramouche'' (1921), ''Captain Blood'' (a.k. ...

(1875–1950): ''

The Sea Hawk ''The Sea Hawk'' is a 1915 novel by Rafael Sabatini. The story is set over the years 1588–1593 and concerns a retired Cornish seafaring gentleman, Sir Oliver Tressilian, who is villainously betrayed by a jealous half-brother. After being ...

'' (1915) *

H. M. Tomlinson Henry Major Tomlinson (21 June 1873 – 5 February 1958) was a British writer and journalist. He was known for anti-war and travel writing, novels and short stories, especially of life at sea. He was born and died in London. Life Tomlinson was ...

(1873–1958): ''Gallions Reach'' (1927) *

Hans Kirk Hans Kirk (11 January 1898 – 16 June 1962) was a Danish lawyer, journalist and celebrated author, who penned the best-selling novel of all-time in his native Denmark, '' The Fishermen'' (1928). From 1926 to 1928 he was among the contributors of ' ...

(1898–1962): ''The Fishermen'' (1928) *

Gore Vidal Eugene Luther Gore Vidal (; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his epigrammatic wit, erudition, and patrician manner. Vidal was bisexual, and in his novels and e ...

(1925–2012): ''

Williwaw In meteorology, a williwaw (archaic spelling williwau) is a sudden blast of wind descending from a mountainous coast to the sea. The word is of unknown origin, but was earliest used by British seamen in the 19th century. The usage appears for wind ...

'' (1946) *

Herman Wouk Herman Wouk ( ; May 27, 1915 – May 17, 2019) was an American author best known for historical fiction such as ''The Caine Mutiny'' (1951) for which he won the Pulitzer Prize in fiction. His other major works include ''The Winds of War'' and ...

(1915–2019): '' The Caine Mutiny'' (1952) * Alistair MacLean (1922–1987): '' HMS Ulysses'' (1955) * Hammond Innes (1913–1998): ''

The Wreck of the Mary Deare ''The Wreck of the Mary Deare'' (in the UK published as ''The Mary Deare'') is a 1956 novel written by British author Hammond Innes, which was later adapted as a film starring Gary Cooper released in 1959 by MGM. According to Jack Adrian, the ...

'' (1956) *

Jorge Amado Jorge Leal Amado de Faria (10 August 1912 – 6 August 2001) was a Brazilian writer of the modernist school. He remains the best known of modern Brazilian writers, with his work having been translated into some 49 languages and popularized in ...

(1912–2001): ''

Sea of Death ''Sea of Death'' (Portuguese: ''Mar Morto'') is a Brazilian Modernist novel written by Jorge Amado. Amado wrote the novel in response to his first arrest for "being a communist". The novel follows the lives of poor sailors around Bahia, and thei ...

'' (1936)

Novellas

Notable novellas include: *

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century f ...

(1899–1961): ''

The Old Man and the Sea ''The Old Man and the Sea'' is a novella written by the American author Ernest Hemingway in 1951 in Cayo Blanco (Cuba), and published in 1952. It was the last major work of fiction written by Hemingway that was published during his lifetime. O ...

Short stories

Stephen Crane Stephen Crane (November 1, 1871 – June 5, 1900) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer. Prolific throughout his short life, he wrote notable works in the Realist tradition as well as early examples of American Naturalism an ...

(1871–1900): " Open Boat" (1898) * Konstantin Mikhailovich Staniukovich (1843–1903): ''Maximka; Sea Stories'' (Translated from the Russian by Bernard Isaacs (Moscow, 1969?) ) * Konstantin Mikhailovich Staniukovich, ''Running to the Shrouds: Nineteenth-Century Sea Stories'', translated from the Russian by Neil Parsons. (London; Boston: Forest Books, 1986). *

, "The Conger Eel"

Magazines

In the twentieth century, sea stories were popular subjects for the pulp magazines. ''

Adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme ...

'' and '' Blue Book'' often ran sea stories by writers such as J. Allan Dunn and

H. Bedford-Jones Henry James O'Brien Bedford-Jones (April 29, 1887 – May 6, 1949) was a Canadian-American historical, adventure fantasy, science fiction, crime and Western writer who became a naturalized United States citizen in 1908. Biography Bedford-Jones ...

as part of their selection of fiction. Other works that included sea stories: * '' Argosy'', an American pulp magazine from 1882 through 1978. * '' Boys Own Paper'', a British story paper aimed at young and teenage boys, published from 1879 to 1967. * '' The Hotspur'', a British boys' paper published by D. C. Thomson & Co. From 1933 to 1959, More specialized magazines include: * '' The Ocean'', one of the first specialized

pulp magazine Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the late 1950s. The term "pulp" derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazine ...

s (March 1907 to January 1908)"Lost at Sea: The Story of The Ocean," introduction to ''The Ocean: 100th Anniversary Collection'' ( Off-Trail Publications, 2008). * ''Sea Stories'', a Street & Smith pulp (February 1922 to June 1930) * ''Sea Novel Magazine'', a Frank A. Munsey pulp (two issues: November 1940 and January 1941) * ''Sea Story Annual'' and ''Sea Story Anthology'' (1940s Street & Smith large-size reprint pulps) * ''Tales of the Sea'', digest (Spring 1953)

Notes

References

Scholarly literature

* Bayley, John "In Which We Serve", in ''Patrick O'Brian: Critical Essays and a Bibliography'', edited A. E. Cunningham. (New York: WW Norton, 1994), pp. 33–42. * * Originally published in James Fenimore Cooper Society Miscellaneous Papers, No. 24, August 2007, pp. 3–8 * Cohen, Margaret. ''The novel and the sea''. (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, c. 2010). * Philip Neil Cooksey. ''A Thematic Study of James Fenimore Cooper's Nautical Fiction''. (Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Louisiana State University, 1977). * Originally published in James Fenimore Cooper Society Miscellaneous Papers No. 25, May 2008, pp. 10–13. * * Ewers, Chris. 'Travelling by Sea and Land in ''Robinson Crusoe, in ''Mobility in the English Novel from Defoe to Austen''. (Woodbridge: Boydell and Brewer, 2018), pp. 27–52. * * * * Leys, Simon. . Paris: Plon, c. 2003. *Parkinson, C. Northcote, ed. ''Portsmouth Point: the Navy in fiction, 1793–1815''. (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2005). * * * Smith, Myron J. jr., and Robert C. Weller, ''Sea fiction guide'', with a foreword by Ernest M. Eller and craft notes by Edward L. Beach t al. (Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1976). * Zainoun, Ibtisam. . (Paris: Harmattan, c. 2007).

External links

*
Historic Naval Fiction
- a website devoted to cataloging historical fiction within the Naval fiction genre. {{Authority control Literary genres Water transport Maritime books Maritime folklore Historical novels subgenres Adventure fiction

Definition

History

Early sea novels

19th century

Late 19th century

The 20th and 21st centuries

Common themes

Masculinity and heroism

Women at sea

The working class at sea

Life ashore

Slave ships

Passenger ships

Nautical detail and language

Other notable works

Novels

Novellas

Short stories

Magazines

See also

Notes

References

Scholarly literature

External links