Irish- Catalan Dr. Stephen Maturin ostensibly serves as an adept ship's surgeon on Aubrey's various commands. However, unknown to many of his associates, he also serves as a particularly skilled volunteer intelligence agent for the British Admiralty. Maturin is described as a small, quiet, "ugly" man who is known to cast a "dangerous, pale, reptilian eye" towards his enemies. Unlike his action-oriented friend, Maturin is very well-educated with several intellectual pursuits. He is passionately fascinated by the natural world, and takes every opportunity to explore the native wildlife of his ships' ports of call around the world. He is also deeply introspective, and frequently muses on philosophical concepts of identity and self-understanding in his ciphered personal journal. [9] Another aspect of this complex character is portrayed by his long-lasting and frequently frustrating romantic pursuit of the beautiful but unreliable Diana Villiers. He uses several addictive substances, including laudanum and coca leaves, arising from scientific curiosity, control of his reactions to physical problems, and substance dependence. He has the values of a gentleman of the era, including a strong sense of honour and involvement in duels. The latter led him to develop a strong skill with pistols and duelling by swords. Lippincott persevered in the US with publication of the next two novels in the series, Post Captain (1972) and HMS Surprise (1973), though sales remained slow. A change of US publisher to Stein and Day for The Mauritius Command did not help, and US publications ceased with Desolation Island in 1978. [21] [24] Norton US reissue 1990 [ edit ] I will quote my wife here: "I don't care about England, I don't want to know anything about their navy, and I certainly don't give a shit about English naval battles in the 19th century. But once I got started on these books I couldn't stop." In an introductory Author's Note to the novel, O'Brian sets out his approach to historical accuracy, noting that historic records of naval battles are filled with "actions that few men could invent". He goes on to say, "That is why I have gone straight to the source for the fighting in this book ... and so when I describe a fight I have log-books, official letters, contemporary accounts or the participants' own memoirs to vouch for every exchange ... Yet, on the other hand, I have not felt slavishly bound to precise chronological sequence; ... within a context of general historical accuracy I have changed names, places and minor events". He considers that "authenticity is a jewel", and that "the admirable men of these times ... are best celebrated in their own splendid actions rather than in imaginary contests". [9] Following the privateer south, Surprise rounds Cape Horn and heads to the Galápagos Islands, where the whaling fleet is concentrated. The ship's surgeon, Stephen Maturin, is interested in the islands' unique flora and fauna, and Aubrey promises his friend several days' exploration time. However, when Surprise reaches the Galápagos, they recover the survivors of a whaling ship, Albatross, burned by Acheron. Aubrey hastily pursues the privateer, dashing Maturin's expectation of more time to explore.

Tobias, Scott (January 4, 2019). "Revisiting Hours: Ships Ahoy — 'Master and Commander' ". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 9, 2019 . Retrieved January 7, 2019.Alexander Kent, pseudonym of Douglas Reeman for his Bolitho novels, a contemporary of O'Brian who wrote a series of novels about the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. November 14, 2003. Archived from the original on October 29, 2020 . Retrieved October 12, 2023. At Sea with Peter Weir". DGA Quarterly. Directors Guild of America. Fall 2005 . Retrieved March 11, 2023. The exploit of deceiving a ship at night by attaching lights to a decoy was executed by Cochrane and was described in his Autobiography of a Seaman. [18] A similar exploit was reported to have been used by the French privateer Joseph-Marie Potier to escape a British frigate near Quiberon Bay in January 1809. [19]

a b Krist, Gary (Summer 1994). "Bad Art, Good Entertainment". The Hudson Review. 47 (2): 299–306. doi: 10.2307/3852288. JSTOR 3852288. Imagine yourself sitting in the music room of the Governor’s House on the island of Minorca in the year 1800, listening to a concert in which you are so transported by the music that your right hand moves in time with the violins – up, down, sideways. Ahhhh… bliss. Bradshaw, Peter (November 21, 2003). "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World". The Guardian. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021 . Retrieved March 1, 2021. UPDATE: I watched the film again last year (had to get a DVD copy from the library; mine was a videotape and my VCR is long gone) and so much of the action feels just like O’Brian’s descriptions in the books. Lots of material from the books is crammed into the movie, but I enjoyed seeing these “old friends” in action, rather than just imagining them. Kay, Jeremy. "Master And Commander chosen as Royal Command Performance". Screen. Archived from the original on August 16, 2022 . Retrieved August 16, 2022.Myers, Kevin (22 January 2000). "O'Brian: the most Irish Englishman". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 21 November 2012 . Retrieved 17 January 2018. In 1990, the US publisher W. W. Norton & Company re-issued the book and its sequels, which was an almost immediate success and drew O'Brian a new and large readership. O'Brian's biographer has placed the novel at the start of what he called the author's magnum opus, a series that has become perhaps the best-loved roman fleuve of the 20th century.

Snow, Richard (6 January 1991). "An Author I'd Walk the Plank For". The New York Times . Retrieved 14 December 2009. a b Cordingly, David (September 2, 2007). "The Real Master and Commander". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on January 12, 2022 . Retrieved November 30, 2016. Scott, A.O. (November 14, 2003). "Film Review; Master Of the Sea (And the French)". The New York Times . Retrieved August 23, 2022. a b "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World". RogerEbert.com. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021 . Retrieved January 10, 2021.

The Good

By the time I was halfway through the book there had already been a pregnancy, two suspected murders, storms and the taking of a prize.

O'Brian's then UK publisher Macmillan, who had originally agreed to jointly commission the book, [22] rejected it as too full of jargon. It was taken up and published by Collins in 1970. [21] It is also the name of the adventure movie with Russell Crowe, although much of the action in the film was actually derived from books much farther down the list, especially Number 10, T he Far Side of the World. So the 21 books are now known by the series title “Master and Commander” as well as “Aubrey-Maturin.” Not too confusing, I hope. After escaping from America, Stephen urges Diana Villiers to marry him, so that she may not be an alien on British soil, subject to possible incarceration, since the two countries are at war. When she does not agree, other measures must be taken, including a trip to France, which is also at war with England. Stephen gives a talk at the Institut, and installs Diana with a friend for her own safety.

The Ugly

a b "The odd couple all at sea". The Telegraph. London. 11 January 1997. Archived from the original on 9 February 2015 . Retrieved 21 February 2010. James D'Arcy". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on January 24, 2021 . Retrieved March 1, 2021. Kiefer, Halle (January 17, 2021). "If You Don't Like 2003's Master and Commander, That's On You, Says Its Star Russell Crowe". Vulture. New York. Archived from the original on January 18, 2021 . Retrieved February 19, 2021.