Casabianca is a young boy, probably no more than a teenager, who remains at his post aboard a French ship after it has been attacked by the British. Even though the deck has caught fire, and the ship is on the brink of exploding, the young lad will not budge. He will only do so on the strict orders of the ship's captain, who also happens to be his father. As both a sun and a subordinate, Casabianca has orders to follow, and follow them he shall, to the bitter end.

The tragedy here, of course, is that Casabianca's father, unbeknownst to his son, has already died, and so is in no position to give out any orders. But that doesn't in any way detract from the boy's remarkable bravery and devotion to duty in the midst of such chaos and destruction.

In devising a character-sketch worthy of the name, one would have to pay tribute to the lad's “heroic blood”. By most people's standards, Casabianca displays remarkable heroism in staying at his post despite the flames licking around him.

What makes his heroism all the more remarkable is that it is tempered with despair. Like all genuine heroes, the lad knows fear, but doesn't show it. His “still yet brave despair” emphasizes once more his standing tall in the face of adversity, ready if necessary to make the supreme sacrifice for his nation.