The Caine Mutiny | Introduction
Herman Wouk's best-selling novel The Caine Mutiny, subtitled A Novel of World War II, remains one of the greatest American novels to come out of World War II. Wouk, himself a WWII veteran who had served aboard minesweepers in the South Pacific, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1952 for this account of a mutiny aboard a fictional minesweeper, the USS Caine. Commercially speaking, Wouk is the most successful writer of his generation. In critical terms, his work is sneered at or altogether ignored. At a time when American ideals were questioned and literature was full of rebellious heroes, Wouk championed conservative morals such as valor, chivalry, patriotism, and loyalty. Almost half a century after its publication, Wouk's morally idealistic novel remains popular.
The Caine Mutiny Summary
The Caine Mutiny opens with a page torn from the book of Navy regulations outlining the articles that will become critical to the plot: the regulations describing the conditions that must be fulfilled in order for a captain to be relieved of his command.
Willie Keith
In a chapter appropriately titled Through the Looking Glass, the novel starts by introducing the reader to the protagonist of the novel, Willie Keith, from whose viewpoint the entire novel is told. Seeking a way to avoid being drafted into the infantry, Willie Keith—an educated, pianoplaying dilettante—is joining the U.S. Navy. His days in training are interspersed with a series of flashbacks that introduce us to his former life and to his girlfriend, an Italian-American singer called May Wynn. A rebellious type, Keith immediately gets into trouble, and faces expulsion throughout his training period. He eventually passes, and is assigned to the USS Caine.
The Caine
Keith arrives in San Francisco to report to his ship and amuses some military officers with his piano playing. To his horror, the Caine is a rusty vessel that seems on the verge of collapse, and Keith feels only contempt for it and his superior officer, Captain de Vriess. Keith hears that discipline on the ship is criminally lax and anticipates that the arrival of a new captain will mark a new order onboard the ship. After failing to decode an important message, Keith is given an unsatisfactory fitness report; his life is changed again when Captain Queeg arrives to take over as commander. Captain Queeg
Queeg arrives early. His habit of rolling steel ball bearings in his palms contributes to the growing belief of his men that something is not quite right. The first time the Caine sets sail, he runs the ship aground and then fails to report the incident. The dangers of... » Complete The Caine Mutiny Summary
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