Captain Queeg
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant Commander Philip Francis Queeg, USN, is a fictional character in Herman Wouk's 1951 novel The Caine Mutiny
. He is also a character in the identically titled 1954 film adaptation
of the novel and in The Caine Mutiny Court Martial, the Broadway theatre
adaptation of the novel that opened in the same year as the film.
and surface warfare officer in destroyers, is assigned in September 1943 as captain of the U.S.S. Caine, a destroyer minesweeper
DMS 18 stationed in the Pacific
during World War II
. He is pulled from anti-submarine school to command the vessel. It is his first command. He is initially welcomed by the crew as a tough, no-nonsense veteran, who will shape up the ship after his slovenly (but effective) predecessor's departure. He has a compulsive habit of handling a pair of ball bearings that produce a clicking sound as he incessantly revolves them. Queeg is married, and lives in Phoenix, Arizona
, but his wife is not a character in the novel.
and is prone to unprovoked angry outbursts. From the first, he begins to make mistakes that endanger his ship. After refusing the assistance of his predecessor in command, he grounds the Caine on a muddy shoal his first time underway. He panics in a fog and nearly collides with a battleship, and passes the blame to his helmsman, starting a series of incidents that eventually results in a scripted court-martial and mental breakdown of the helmsman.
Queeg neglects to order the ship to stop turning while distracted in reprimanding a crew member for having his shirttail out, and so the Caine steams over its own towline, severing it. When called on the carpet by a superior after this incident, he refuses to acknowledge that it even happened, much less admit blame in any way (although he harbors a secret grudge against his helmsman for not warning him). His superiors are not satisfied, but allow him to retain command.
The Caine is sent to San Francisco for installation of new radars in December 1943 (although the officers speculate that he might be relieved of command). Queeg uses the opportunity to buy up the liquor rations of all his officers to take home, a breach of Naval Regulations. He orders a crate made for more than 30 bottles, and his carpenter's mate, unaccustomed to such shenanigans, partitions the crate with sheets of lead
, making it extremely heavy. Arriving in San Francisco Bay
, Queeg orders the Caine across the bay to Oakland to drop off the crate before docking the ship. He orders the novel's protagonist
, Willie Keith, to act as boat officer to take the unwieldy crate ashore, but his own contradictory orders to the boat crew cause the loss of the crate. When Willie requests leave, Queeg brings up the boat incident and extorts
reimbursement from Willie for the lost liquor.
The Caines overhaul is cut short when the ship is ordered to participate in the invasion of Kwajalein
. During its combat assignment, Queeg is observed to always frequent the sheltered side of the ship's bridge from the beach. When he orders the ship to withdraw before reaching the line of departure
while escorting a Marine landing craft under hostile fire, his subordinates consider him either crazy or a coward. Queeg orders a yellow dye marker thrown into the water to mark the spot for the Marines, and is soon referred to by his officers as "Old Yellowstain", a play on words referencing both the dye marker as well as cowardice.
Another episode which highlights Queeg's behaviors occurs when a quart of strawberries vanishes from the wardroom icebox. Remembering how he helped solve a mystery involving a similar theft when he was an ensign earlier in his career, Queeg attempts to recreate his former accomplishment by insisting the strawberries were pilfered by a crewmember with a duplicate key. Queeg orders every key on the ship collected, and a thorough search made. During the search, the captain is confronted with evidence that the messboys ate the strawberries. Queeg loses all enthusiasm for the search, though he orders it to continue, and it is continued in a desultory way amid public mocking of the captain.
.
During Maryk's subsequent court-martial
, Queeg takes the stand, and although found sane by three psychiatrists, is maneuvered by Maryk's lawyer, Lieutenant Barney Greenwald, to reveal his peculiar behaviors to the court. The attorney elicits a "diagnosis" from one psychiatrist that Queeg has a paranoid personality
, but the question of how disabling is the condition is never resolved. This leaves the reader to ponder whether Maryk's actions had been justified as Greenwald in a drunken speech at a party following Maryk's acquittal, praises Queeg for choosing a career defending the country, and condemns Keefer for inciting a mutiny and then running from the consequences. Had the officers been more supportive of the Captain, he maintains, it would not have been necessary for Maryk to relieve Queeg. Greenwald is convinced that the officers let Queeg down, rather than the other way around. He throws a glass of white wine into Keefer's face, leaving him with a yellow stain of his own.
After the trial, Queeg is assigned to a naval depot in Iowa and is passed over for promotion, likely signalling the end of his naval career.
The Caine Mutiny
The Caine Mutiny is a 1952 Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Herman Wouk. The novel grew out of Wouk's personal experiences aboard a destroyer-minesweeper in the Pacific in World War II and deals with, among other things, the moral and ethical decisions made at sea by the captains of ships...
. He is also a character in the identically titled 1954 film adaptation
The Caine Mutiny (film)
The Caine Mutiny is a 1954 American drama film set during World War II, directed by Edward Dmytryk and produced by Stanley Kramer. It stars Humphrey Bogart, José Ferrer, Van Johnson and Fred MacMurray, and is based on the 1951 Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Herman Wouk The Caine Mutiny. The film...
of the novel and in The Caine Mutiny Court Martial, the Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
adaptation of the novel that opened in the same year as the film.
Character overview
Queeg, a 1936 graduate of the United States Naval AcademyUnited States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
and surface warfare officer in destroyers, is assigned in September 1943 as captain of the U.S.S. Caine, a destroyer minesweeper
Destroyer minesweeper
Destroyer minesweeper was a designation given by the United States Navy to a series of destroyers that were converted into high-speed ocean-going minesweepers for service during World War II. The hull number for such a ship began "DMS"...
DMS 18 stationed in the Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He is pulled from anti-submarine school to command the vessel. It is his first command. He is initially welcomed by the crew as a tough, no-nonsense veteran, who will shape up the ship after his slovenly (but effective) predecessor's departure. He has a compulsive habit of handling a pair of ball bearings that produce a clicking sound as he incessantly revolves them. Queeg is married, and lives in Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
, but his wife is not a character in the novel.
Eccentricity
It quickly becomes apparent that Queeg is prone to eccentric behavior. Queeg displays an oppressive command styleMicromanagement
In business management, micromanagement is a management style where a manager closely observes or controls the work of her or his subordinates or employees...
and is prone to unprovoked angry outbursts. From the first, he begins to make mistakes that endanger his ship. After refusing the assistance of his predecessor in command, he grounds the Caine on a muddy shoal his first time underway. He panics in a fog and nearly collides with a battleship, and passes the blame to his helmsman, starting a series of incidents that eventually results in a scripted court-martial and mental breakdown of the helmsman.
Queeg neglects to order the ship to stop turning while distracted in reprimanding a crew member for having his shirttail out, and so the Caine steams over its own towline, severing it. When called on the carpet by a superior after this incident, he refuses to acknowledge that it even happened, much less admit blame in any way (although he harbors a secret grudge against his helmsman for not warning him). His superiors are not satisfied, but allow him to retain command.
The Caine is sent to San Francisco for installation of new radars in December 1943 (although the officers speculate that he might be relieved of command). Queeg uses the opportunity to buy up the liquor rations of all his officers to take home, a breach of Naval Regulations. He orders a crate made for more than 30 bottles, and his carpenter's mate, unaccustomed to such shenanigans, partitions the crate with sheets of lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
, making it extremely heavy. Arriving in San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
, Queeg orders the Caine across the bay to Oakland to drop off the crate before docking the ship. He orders the novel's protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
, Willie Keith, to act as boat officer to take the unwieldy crate ashore, but his own contradictory orders to the boat crew cause the loss of the crate. When Willie requests leave, Queeg brings up the boat incident and extorts
Extortion
Extortion is a criminal offence which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person, entity, or institution, through coercion. Refraining from doing harm is sometimes euphemistically called protection. Extortion is commonly practiced by organized crime...
reimbursement from Willie for the lost liquor.
The Caines overhaul is cut short when the ship is ordered to participate in the invasion of Kwajalein
Kwajalein
Kwajalein Atoll , is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands . The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island. English-speaking residents of the U.S...
. During its combat assignment, Queeg is observed to always frequent the sheltered side of the ship's bridge from the beach. When he orders the ship to withdraw before reaching the line of departure
Line of Departure
Line of Departure is a military term used to denote the starting position for an attack on enemy positions. During the Second World War, the term in use in the British, Canadian and American militaries was Start Line...
while escorting a Marine landing craft under hostile fire, his subordinates consider him either crazy or a coward. Queeg orders a yellow dye marker thrown into the water to mark the spot for the Marines, and is soon referred to by his officers as "Old Yellowstain", a play on words referencing both the dye marker as well as cowardice.
Another episode which highlights Queeg's behaviors occurs when a quart of strawberries vanishes from the wardroom icebox. Remembering how he helped solve a mystery involving a similar theft when he was an ensign earlier in his career, Queeg attempts to recreate his former accomplishment by insisting the strawberries were pilfered by a crewmember with a duplicate key. Queeg orders every key on the ship collected, and a thorough search made. During the search, the captain is confronted with evidence that the messboys ate the strawberries. Queeg loses all enthusiasm for the search, though he orders it to continue, and it is continued in a desultory way amid public mocking of the captain.
Mutiny
The first officer, Lieutenant Steve Maryk, remains loyal to the captain but is eventually goaded into believing that Queeg is unfit for command by communications officer Lieutenant Tom Keefer, an aspiring novelist pressed into wartime service who has a grudge against the captain. Keefer persuades Maryk that the captain may be mentally ill, causing the exec, who is a man of the sea but not particularly intelligent, to study medical books on mental illness. After 15 months with Queeg in command, the Caine is caught in a typhoon and in danger of sinking. Maryk concludes that Queeg is unable to deal with the crisis and relieves him of command on the grounds of mental illnessMental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
.
During Maryk's subsequent court-martial
Court-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
, Queeg takes the stand, and although found sane by three psychiatrists, is maneuvered by Maryk's lawyer, Lieutenant Barney Greenwald, to reveal his peculiar behaviors to the court. The attorney elicits a "diagnosis" from one psychiatrist that Queeg has a paranoid personality
Paranoia
Paranoia [] is a thought process believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of irrationality and delusion. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself...
, but the question of how disabling is the condition is never resolved. This leaves the reader to ponder whether Maryk's actions had been justified as Greenwald in a drunken speech at a party following Maryk's acquittal, praises Queeg for choosing a career defending the country, and condemns Keefer for inciting a mutiny and then running from the consequences. Had the officers been more supportive of the Captain, he maintains, it would not have been necessary for Maryk to relieve Queeg. Greenwald is convinced that the officers let Queeg down, rather than the other way around. He throws a glass of white wine into Keefer's face, leaving him with a yellow stain of his own.
After the trial, Queeg is assigned to a naval depot in Iowa and is passed over for promotion, likely signalling the end of his naval career.
Quoted
- In the case Planned Parenthood v Casey, Supreme Court Justice Anthony KennedyAnthony KennedyAnthony McLeod Kennedy is an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, having been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. Since the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor, Kennedy has often been the swing vote on many of the Court's politically charged 5–4 decisions...
explained his difficulty in coming to a decision (he ultimately sided with the Pro-ChoicePro-choiceSupport for the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-choice movement, a sociopolitical movement supporting the ethical view that a woman should have the legal right to elective abortion, meaning the right to terminate her pregnancy....
majority ruling) as follows: "Sometimes you don't know if you're Caesar about to cross the RubiconRubiconThe Rubicon is a shallow river in northeastern Italy, about 80 kilometres long, running from the Apennine Mountains to the Adriatic Sea through the southern Emilia-Romagna region, between the towns of Rimini and Cesena. The Latin word rubico comes from the adjective "rubeus", meaning "red"...
or Captain Queeg cutting your own tow line."
Trivia
- In the movie, Captain Queeg speaks of seeing action in the North Atlantic against German U-Boats.
- Keefer makes a remark comparing Queeg to Captain William BlighWilliam BlighVice Admiral William Bligh FRS RN was an officer of the British Royal Navy and a colonial administrator. A notorious mutiny occurred during his command of HMAV Bounty in 1789; Bligh and his loyal men made a remarkable voyage to Timor, after being set adrift in the Bounty's launch by the mutineers...
, R.N.
- Queeg will mention that on a cruiser as an Ensign in 1937, cheese was stolen by a sailor who made a key for the ship's pantry. Queeg was commended when he discovered the thief. In Mutiny on the BountyMutiny on the BountyThe mutiny on the Bounty was a mutiny that occurred aboard the British Royal Navy ship HMS Bounty on 28 April 1789, and has been commemorated by several books, films, and popular songs, many of which take considerable liberties with the facts. The mutiny was led by Fletcher Christian against the...
, Captain Bligh accuses the crew of stealing two cheeses. Later, Bligh blames the ship's company for the theft of ten coconuts, much as Queeg does with the strawberries.
- Queeg stops the crew from watching a movie; both in Mister RobertsMister RobertsMister Roberts is a 1946 novel written by Thomas Heggen.-Plot:The title character, a Lieutenant Junior Grade naval officer, defends his crew against the petty tyranny of the ship's commanding officer during World War II...
and the sequel Ensign PulverEnsign PulverEnsign Pulver is a 1964 American film and a sequel to the 1955 film Mister Roberts. The movie features Robert Walker Jr., Burl Ives, Walter Matthau, Tommy Sands, Millie Perkins, Kay Medford, Peter Marshall, Jack Nicholson, Richard Gautier, George Lindsey, James Farentino, and James Coco.- Synopsis...
; Captain Morton forbids the crew from seeing movies.