Far Tortuga by Peter Matthiessen
"Far Tortuga" by Peter Matthiessen is a novel set in the Caribbean that follows the journey of Raib Avers, the captain of the Lillias Eden, a schooner engaged in capturing green sea turtles between the Cayman Islands and Central America. As the son of a turtle-boat captain, Raib grapples with the challenges of modernizing his aging vessel while managing a diverse and often quarrelsome crew. The narrative delves into the cultural dynamics among the crew, who discuss their lives, prejudices, and aspirations while facing the dangers of their trade. Tensions arise as they encounter a rival captain, Desmond Eden, and grapple with the looming threat of a hurricane.
The story captures themes of isolation, the struggle for survival, and the complexities of human relationships amidst the backdrop of nature's unpredictability. As the crew's morale deteriorates and the ship faces catastrophic failures, Raib’s ambitions clash with the harsh realities of life at sea. Ultimately, the narrative culminates in a tragic conclusion as the crew confronts the consequences of their choices, highlighting the precariousness of their existence and the bond formed through shared hardship. The novel provides nuanced insights into the lives of turtle fishermen, their cultural identity, and the unforgiving nature of their environment.
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Far Tortuga by Peter Matthiessen
First published: 1975
Type of work: Novel
Type of plot: Adventure
Time of plot: 1968
Locale: Cayman Islands, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Caribbean
Principal characters
Raib Avers , captain of theLillias Eden Jim Eden “Buddy” Avers , his sonWill Parchment , the mate of theLillias Eden Vemon Dilbert Evers , ,Byrum Powery Watler , ,Wodie Greaves , andJunior “Speedy” Bodden , turtlersMiguel Moreno Smith , the boat’s engineerAthens Ebanks , the boat’s cookAndrew Avers , Raib’s father, also a turtle-boat captainDesmond Eden , another captain
The Story:
Raib Avers is captain of the Lillias Eden, a schooner that travels the West Indian turtle banks between the Cayman Islands and the coast of Central America, primarily Honduras and Nicaragua, capturing green sea turtles. Son of another turtle-boat captain, Andrew Avers, Raib tries to round up a suitable number of turtles with the help of and often despite his sometimes quarrelsome crewmen. Raib needs to catch as many turtles as possible before they move south to lay eggs.
Raib has tried to modernize the Lillias Eden, converting it from a wind schooner to an engine-driven vessel, but the ship is a ramshackle mess, replete with defects such as a bent engine shaft. The captain cannot afford the additional modifications to make his craft truly seaworthy. There are complaints that Raib relies too much on the wind, preferring to zigzag instead of going straight. Some of the crew also object to how inferior their vessel is to competing ships, but generally they have faith in any ship built in the Caymans because of the superiority of the wood there.
The crewmen of the Lillias Eden talk about all manner of topics, from the navigating skills of the green turtle to ghosts, often revealing their prejudices, especially when intoxicated. Vemon Dilbert Evers, the most outspoken and colorful of the men, is not alone in denigrating Spanish-speaking countries, claiming that the people of Honduras and Nicaragua do not care about life. The turtlers, as the crewmen are called, are proud to be from the Caymans, where ethnic background is of little concern. They are suspicious of the boat’s engineer, Miguel Moreno Smith, who calls himself Brown because he is Spanish and seems unstable. Raib teases the men for spreading rumors that turtler Wodie Greaves is wanted for murder.
The men also suspect the motives of the United States, always referred to as the place of the Yankees, for trying to tell the rest of the world how to behave. They ridicule the Bay of Pigs disaster. Vemon hates communists and wants to bomb Cuba. Raib keeps everything going by making allowances for his crew, realizing that Speedy only pretends to be a fool so that others will not expect too much of him. He is disappointed, however, in his son, Buddy, for lacking spirit.
Raib becomes annoyed at the mention of a rival captain, Desmond Eden, who claims to be Raib’s illegitimate half-brother. Byrum also hates Desmond, who was once caught smuggling guns on a Nicaraguan fruit boat; Byrum was fired along with him. The Lillias Eden eventually encounters Desmond’s ship, the Davy Jones, and Raib is angered to discover his elderly father, Andrew, aboard. Because Andrew has had a stroke and cannot speak, Raib takes him aboard the Lillias Eden, assigning Buddy to look after his grandfather. The men accuse Desmond of taking every last cent from naïve immigrants for smuggling them to Florida and Texas and of killing a man in Honduras.
Desmond’s appearance is seen as a bad omen and is soon followed by signs of a potential hurricane. The increasing winds make the crewmen nervous. Raib calls the howling wind the sound of hell. The turtlers then start to consider Wodie a Jonah. Will Parchment recalls swearing he would never go turtling again after surviving a hurricane. Despite the looming dangers, Buddy realizes he wants to be a turtler.
The inadequacies of the Lillias Eden become more obvious when its crew encounters the more modern Alice H. Adams, which is carrying 450 turtles compared to the seventeen on Raib’s ship. Andrew Avers is found dead, and his body is being gnawed by a rat. Another ominous sign leads to several of the crew abandoning the ship. Before leaving, Athens Ebanks, the cook, complains that only three men do any work, as dissension and drinking increase. Raib resents the departure of Vemon, whom he has known for forty years. Brown leaves after threatening Raib with a knife. Adding to uncertainties about the future are rumors that Nicaragua will close off its turtle banks to vessels from the Caymans.
In the ensuing storm, the Lillias Eden strikes a reef and begins sinking. Raib, Buddy, and Will are killed. Byrum and Woodie soon die, leaving Speedy the only survivor.
Bibliography
Bender, Bert. “Far Tortuga and American Sea Fiction Since Moby-Dick.” American Literature 56, no. 2 (May, 1984): 227-248. Analyzes Raib Avers as an Everyman sea captain.
Cooley, John R. “Matthiessen’s Voyages on the River Styx: Deathly Waters, Endangered Peoples.” In Earthly Words: Essays on Contemporary American Nature and Environmental Writers, edited by John R. Cooley. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1994. Examines how Matthiessen’s characters are caught between environmental and societal change. Part of a larger study of nature and environmental writers and writing.
‗‗‗‗‗‗‗. “Waves of Change: Peter Matthiessen’s Caribbean.” Environmental Review 11, no. 3 (Autumn, 1987): 223-230. A study of the ways in which Far Tortuga reflects Caribbean cultural issues of the 1960’s.
Dowie, William. Peter Matthiessen. Boston: Twayne, 1991. Provides a good introduction to Matthiessen for the beginning student of his fiction. Includes bibliographical references and an index.
Grove, James P. “Pastoralism and Anti-Pastoralism in Peter Matthiessen’s Far Tortuga.” Critique 21, no. 2 (1979): 15-29. A look at how Matthiessen’s impressionistic style in Far Tortuga helps convey his themes.
Patteson, Richard F. “Holistic Vision and Fictional Form in Peter Matthiessen’s Far Tortuga.” Rocky Mountain Review of Language and Literature 37, nos. 1/2 (1983): 70-81. Discusses the influence of Zen Buddhism on Matthiessen’s environmental themes as they manifest in Far Tortuga.
Raglon, Rebecca. “Fact and Fiction: The Development of Ecological Form in Peter Matthiessen’s Far Tortuga.” Critique 35, no. 4 (1994): 245-259. Looks at Matthiessen’s work, Far Tortuga especially, as a criticism of the dualistic view of nature and humanity. Argues that Matthiessen sees no separation between nature and humanity and writes instead of their necessary interrelatedness.
Roberson, William. Peter Matthiessen: An Annotated Bibliography. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2001. This useful guide to resources on Matthiessen’s work provides listings of primary and secondary source literature.
Tredinnick, Mark. “The Long Coastline: Peter Matthiessen.” In The Land’s Wild Music: Encounters with Barry Lopez, Peter Matthiessen, Terry Tempest Williams, and James Galvin. San Antonio, Tex.: Trinity University Press, 2005. Presents a profile of Matthiessen and reflections on his writings, interwoven with an extended interview conducted as Matthiessen guides Tredinnick through his home landscape.
Yamashiro, Shin. “Seascapes as a Critical Framework in American Sea Literature.” Tamkang Review 37, no. 1 (Autumn, 2006): 99-120. Compares the sea storm in Far Tortuga to that presented in Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana, Jr.