The Fortune of War

The novel is fairly episodic in construction—Aubrey and Maturin first turn in the Leopard, then seek passage on La Fleche, then are castaway and rescued, then help fight Java and are captured, then recuperate in Boston, then become embroiled in intrigues and escape, and finally help fight Shannon. Although the two combats described were historic events and the plot positions the two characters at the correct time and place to participate in them, there is little narrative necessity to the overarching construction. In general, the adventures and misadventures of Aubrey and Maturin—and later Villiers—are simply the fortune of war, as foreshadowed by the novel's title.

As with many elements of the narrative construction, however, the title has a subtle double meaning. Throughout the discussion of the war between America and England the dominant concern of most characters voicing any...