The Caine Mutiny

Originally published in 1951, The Caine Mutiny is a brilliant and dramatic story of life and mutiny aboard a Navy warship in the Pacific theater. It addresses both human moral complexity and the consequences of action during World War II (WWII).

Herman Wouk is a Pulitzer-Prize winning Jewish-American author who has written a number of bestselling novels including The Winds of War, and War and Remembrance, the novel he dedicated to his firstborn son after he died in a tragic accident.

The Caine Mutiny was published in 1951 and spent 17 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. In 1954, the book was released as a film by Colombia Pictures. It starred Humphrey Bogart as Queeg, and the role earned him his third Academy Award.



Wouk was born in 1915 in New York City to a Jewish family who emigrated from Russia. He received a B. A. from Colombia University in 1934. Wouk started his career as a radio dramatist and later worked for the United States government writing radio spots to sell war bonds. He joined the Navy, serving as an officer aboard two mine sweepers, later becoming an executive officer. He began writing his first novel, Aurora Dawn, during his off-duty hours. His work was forwarded to a New York editor which resulted in a publisher’s contract, and the novel was published in 1947. It was around this time that Wouk became a full-time writer to support his family.

Drawing from his experience aboard the mine sweep during WWII, The Caine Mutiny won the Pulitzer Prize in 1951. The book was adapted into a Broadway play: The Caine Mutiny Court Martial. His character, Captain Queeg, remains one of the greatest characters in American fiction. In 1998, Wouk received the Guardian of Zion Award.

The story is told from the point of view of Willis Seaward Keith (Willie), a wealthy, immature, working-for-meager-wages nightclub piano player. Willie signs up with the United States Navy to avoid being drafted by the Army during WWII. The novel describes his inner conflicts with his domineering, opinionated mother and with a gorgeous red-haired nightclub singer named May Wynn, the daughter of Italian immigrants.



After a series of mishaps earns him the most demerits in his midshipman’s class, he becomes an ensign and is assigned to the destroyer mine sweeper the USS Caine, an obsolete, rundown warship. Willie misses his ship when it leaves on a combat mission. Instead of catching up with it, he dodges his duty to play the piano for an admiral who has taken a liking to him. He soon forgets his guilt and makes the round of parties thrown by the admiral.

Eventually, Willie does board the Caine but after the ship has undergone its mission in his absence. Willie objects to the Caine’s worn-out condition and the sloppy crew. He attributes this to a lack of discipline from the ship’s captain Lieutenant Commander William DeVriess. Willie has a bad attitude towards what he views as menial tasks. When he forgets to decode a communications message that alerts DeVriess that relief is on its way, he and DeVriess have an altercation and Willie is punished. Still smarting, Willie meets Lieutenant Commander Philip Francis Queeg, who relieves DeVriess. He is a strong-willed, by-the-book commander. This is his first time in this post. At first, Willie thinks that Queeg is exactly what the ship needs, but Queeg soon makes a series of mistakes that he is unwilling to take responsibility for.

The Caine is sent to San Francisco for an overhaul. Before departure, Queeg harasses his officers into selling him their alcohol rations. In a breach of the rules, Queeg smuggles the liquor off the ship. When it is lost, he blackmails Willie into paying for it. While on leave, Willie see May, sleeps with her, then decides he has no future with a woman of a lower social class. He ends the relationship by ignoring her letters.



As the new commander of the Caine, Queeg loses the respect and loyalty of his crew after a series of incidents. Tension mounts as Queeg isolates himself from the other officers. These officers snub Queeg, believing him to be an unworthy coward. Queeg is ordered to escort a low-flying craft to the departure line. Instead, he drops a yellow dye to mark the spot and quickly leaves the battle area.

Communications officer Lieutenant Thomas Keefer plants the seed that Queeg is suffering from mental illness. He directs Queeg’s subordinate Lieutenant Stephen Maryk to the section of the Navy Regulations that states a lower ranking officer can relieve a commanding officer of their duties under extraordinary circumstances. Maryk keeps a log of Queeg’s behaviors and brings it to the attention of Admiral Halsey, commander of the Third Fleet. At first Halsey supports Maryk, then later changes his mind, citing Maryk’s behavior as mutiny.

Soon after, the Caine is caught in a typhoon. During the worst of the storm, Queeg’s inability to act convinces Maryk to relieve him of his command. Willie supports his decision. Maryk is tried by court martial for his actions. Keefer distances himself from any responsibility. Lieutenant Barry Greenwald, an attorney, agrees to represent Maryk although he believes Maryk is unjustified in his actions. Queeg is deemed sane by three Navy psychiatrists, but he is still transferred to a supply depot in Iowa. Maryk is acquitted.



At a party to celebrate the publication of Keefer’s new novel, Greenwald confronts Keefer, calling him a coward and throwing a glass of wine in his face. Greenwald is ashamed of destroying Queeg’s career on the stand. He felt that Queeg did a good job of guarding his men during peacetime.

Willie returns to the Caine in the final days of the Okinawa campaign as an executive officer. Keefer is now the captain. When struck by a kamikaze, Keefer’s behavior is strikingly similar to Queeg’s during the typhoon. Keefer panics and orders the crew to abandon the ship while Willie calmly stays on board and troubleshoots the problem. Keefer is sent home in shame after the war ends. Willie becomes the Caine’s final captain. He receives both a Bronze Star Medal for his actions during the kamikaze and a letter of reprimand for his part in what happened to Queeg. The findings of the court martial are overturned. Willie now sees that Queeg’s relief was unjustified.

Willie keeps the Caine afloat through one more typhoon then brings it to Bayonne, New Jersey for decommissioning. He has a change of heart and decides to ask May to marry him. The book ends without May giving him her answer and their relationship unresolved.