How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
In this breathless pause at the threshold of a long passage we seemed to be measuring our fitness for a long and arduous enterprise, the appointed task of both our existences to be carried out, far from all human eyes, with only sky and sea for spectators and judges. (1.2)
The narrator of this story has an intimate sense of the nature around him. But why would a guy spend so much time thinking about nature? Oh yeah, because he doesn't have any friends to talk to.
Quote #2
And suddenly I rejoiced in the great security of the sea as compared with the unrest of the land, in my choice of that untempted life presenting no disquieting problems. (1.17)
Even though the captain is a lonely dude, he enjoys being out on the open sea. He finds it peaceful because it's simple. City life is complicated and filled with all kinds of twists and turns. But on the sea, all you have to do is get where you're going.
Quote #3
And to find him sitting so quietly was surprising, like something against nature, inhuman. (2.138)
When it comes time for Leggatt to leave the ship, the narrator finds him sitting in a way that seems totally unnatural to him. All through this book, Leggatt has always seemed to be not quite there, and his unnatural appearance often makes you wonder whether he's even real.
Quote #4
Bless my soul! Do you mean, sir, in the dark amongst the lot of all them islands and reefs and shoals? (2.124)
When he hears that the ship is going to turn toward the nearby reefs and islands, the chief mate almost loses his mind. He can't think of any possible reason to tempt fate like this and take the boat into such dangerous waters. But then again, he doesn't realize that the captain is trying to drop a friend off at the nearest island.
Quote #5
Unknown to trade, to travel, almost to geography, the manner of life [the islands] harbor is an unsolved secret" (2.119)
The captain tells us that the islands in his boat's vicinity are pretty much unknown to any European travellers. No one even knows what kinds of animals or people live on them.
Quote #6
The night, clear and starry, sparkled darkly, and the opaque, lightless patches shifting slowly against the low stars were the drifting islets. (2.144)
Again, the captain shows us how observant he is of the natural world around him. When you're out at sea, you get a lot of time to stare out into nature. And when you spend 99% of your time staring at open water, any kind of land is going to make a big impression – even at night.
Quote #7
When I opened my eyes the second view started my heart with a thump. The black southern hill of Koh-ring seemed to hang right over the ship like a towering fragment of the everlasting night. (2.174)
The captain realizes that he's putting himself and his entire crew in danger when he steers his ship toward the island of Koh-ring, but the man's got a plan. First, he needs to set his friend Leggatt free on the island, and second, he needs to force his crew to trust him, no matter how insane his orders might be. Let's hope he weathers this storm.
Quote #8
On my right hand there were lines of fishing stakes resembling a mysterious system of half-submerged bamboo fences, incomprehensible in its division of the domain of tropical fishes. (1.1)
The captain opens the story with a description of fishing weirs. But we can't tell whether the weirs are abandoned, because there's no sign of any human settlement in the area. The word "incomprehensible" is especially relevant because it helps convey just how much the captain doesn't understand about his surroundings. He's a real fish out of water, if we may.
Quote #9
[For] there was no sign of human habitation as far as the eye could reach. (1.1).
The captain can look all he wants, but he ain't going to find any signs of human life. Nope, it's nothing but nature as far as the eye can see. And you know what this means? It means that the captain will have to face his personal problems head-on, because there's nothing to distract him from them, like videos of puppies falling down stairs among other things.
Quote #10
She floated at the starting point of a long journey, very still in an immense stillness, the shadows of her spars flung far to the eastward by the setting sun. (1.2)
The captain can't help but notice how small and insignificant his ship is compared to the huge ocean and the setting sun. Mother Nature sure does have a way of humbling you when you really take a moment and think about it...or when you're feeling particularly vulnerable out alone at sea.