Captain Steve’s Decision

Use this forum to discuss the April 2019 Book of the month, "Adrift" by Charlie Sheldon
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Re: Captain Steve’s Decision

Post by Kajori Sheryl Paul »

Juliana_Isabella wrote: 19 Apr 2019, 21:38 You bring up an interesting point about his motives for abandoning ship, but I do think that the safety of himself and his crew was still his primary reason for doing so. As for secondary/supporting reasons, he may very well have subconsciously wanted to find a way to spend more time with his son, even if that meant sabotaging his job.
His primary motive was saving lives. If he at all thought of his son, it must have been in the sub-conscious.
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Post by Kajori Sheryl Paul »

tiyamalik wrote: 19 Apr 2019, 08:37 I think he was more worried about his crew, in the beginning, than he was of himself. Later on though, there were some decisions of his that didn't at all coincide with what the Captain had been in the start. You can blame old-age or his past for that.
Umm, I do not think that his old-age or past had anything to do with his decision. He only wanted to save lives.
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Post by Kajori Sheryl Paul »

Kibetious wrote: 22 Apr 2019, 02:45 I guess the decision would largely depend on what a person, in this case Steve, valued much, his work or colleagues. A person who'd want to keep his job would probably not abandon the ship till the last minute hence would have endangered the entire crew. I am of the opinion that he made the right decision.
Me too. After all, life is more important than anything else.
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Post by Kajori Sheryl Paul »

Popcorn1 wrote: 24 Apr 2019, 04:18 Captain Steve's decision is the correct one in the given situation. It is better to risk his career as the captain of that ship rather than to risk the lives of his crew. In that situation where there are less than fire protection gears and they are running out of oxygen yet they can't put out the fire, it is inevitable that there will be casualties if they persist. When there are no other options to prevent the fire from spreading or to kill the fire, only then did Captain Steve made the order to abandon ship.
Yes, his decision was a well-thought out one.
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Post by Kajori Sheryl Paul »

Kibetious wrote: 26 Apr 2019, 04:29
Juliana_Isabella wrote: 19 Apr 2019, 21:38 You bring up an interesting point about his motives for abandoning ship, but I do think that the safety of himself and his crew was still his primary reason for doing so. As for secondary/supporting reasons, he may very well have subconsciously wanted to find a way to spend more time with his son, even if that meant sabotaging his job.
I think much of the evidence point to the fact that he did it in order to save the lives of the crew. I am convinced of this because afterwards he could not stop thinking how a whole bank of sensors had gone down without anyone knowing. So, somehow, he was still concerned about his job.
Well, that happened after the entire ordeal. I think only after reaching land did he think about his career seriously.
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Post by Kajori Sheryl Paul »

Radiant3 wrote: 29 Apr 2019, 09:08 Throughout the book, Steve seemed to be a man of integrity and a dedicated Captain. I think he made what he felt was the most right and responsible decision at the time.
Exactly, his decision was the one any responsible Captain would have made.
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Post by Kajori Sheryl Paul »

Echo Haapala wrote: 29 Apr 2019, 10:12 Before reading this question, I didn’t really think about the early retirement for him. But now I definitely think that it could have played a subconscious role in his decision making.
If it did play a role at all, it must have been a subconscious one.
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Post by Anna Maria 86 »

Take into consideration that captain Steve knew very well what an evacuation in this area, in December, with that weather, and that far away from the shore meant. I think he was well.aware they could also die in the lifeboat, crash into the rocks on the shore or not be found while trying to stay alive in the wilderness, far away from any help. Abandoning ship was as risky a move as staying on board. I don't think he would take such a risk not having been sure they had more chances to survive that way.
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Post by Kibet Hillary »

Captain Steve may have jumped into the decision he made but eventually the crew was able to survive. He was not a person who was greedy for gain otherwise he could have waited till the last minute before thinking of the lives of the crew.
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Post by Kibet Hillary »

Anna Maria 86 wrote: 30 Apr 2019, 22:59 Take into consideration that captain Steve knew very well what an evacuation in this area, in December, with that weather, and that far away from the shore meant. I think he was well.aware they could also die in the lifeboat, crash into the rocks on the shore or not be found while trying to stay alive in the wilderness, far away from any help. Abandoning ship was as risky a move as staying on board. I don't think he would take such a risk not having been sure they had more chances to survive that way.
This is very true. The comparison of the two scenarios shows that he made a hard decision and I guess no one will ever make any decision to hurt themselves. It was better to lose a job than lives.
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Post by Kibet Hillary »

Kajori50 wrote: 30 Apr 2019, 13:09
Radiant3 wrote: 29 Apr 2019, 09:08 Throughout the book, Steve seemed to be a man of integrity and a dedicated Captain. I think he made what he felt was the most right and responsible decision at the time.
Exactly, his decision was the one any responsible Captain would have made.
Yes, any responsible company who values the life of the members of the crew would have made the same decision. It was not an easy one because he was not sure whether the fire would raze down the ship or not since he knew his job would be at risk if the ship could be found unburnt.
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Post by Kibet Hillary »

Kajori50 wrote: 30 Apr 2019, 13:18
Echo Haapala wrote: 29 Apr 2019, 10:12 Before reading this question, I didn’t really think about the early retirement for him. But now I definitely think that it could have played a subconscious role in his decision making.
If it did play a role at all, it must have been a subconscious one.
It may be true that he was thinking aout retirement but he still had his son to take care. I also think that retirement for him was still afar off since William was also still working yet he was older.
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Post by Ferdinand_Otieno »

Smiley 25 wrote: 09 Apr 2019, 00:43 Do you think Captain Steve’s choice to abandon ship was the right one or do you think he jumped the gun? Do you think his inability to see his son very often and his being close to retirement age influenced his decision at all? Almost like self sabatoge. His heart and mind are clearly on his son. He loves his crew and doesn’t want any harm to come to them, but did he decide to jump ship more quickly because deep down he knows it will end his career as a Captain? I can’t imagine having to make such a decision. You hold not only your own life in your hands, but the lives of your entire crew. No one knows what they might do in a situation like that until they are in it. I feel like I would be more likely to abandon ship more quickly. I wouldn’t want to risk the lives of my people on a hunch. I personally think that Captain Steve made the right choice given the information he had. However I do think thoughts of being able to see his son more often might have played a subconscious role.
He had a split second to make the best decision he had and I think that he did make the best choice, no one died.
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Post by DorcasToo »

If I were Steve i would have done nothing differently. Considering his family crisis at home and his ship sinking he was justified in his actions.
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Post by jahagen »

I think he had made the right decision in abandoning the ship. They were already having difficulty in locating all of the fires, and many of his crew were already burned and injured. It seemed that he truly thought the ship would sink, so leaving was his best option.
The thought of spending more time with his son certainly might have crossed his mind, but I think it was also sort of used as a coping mechanism for the reality he might face in losing his license, and didn't so much play a part in his actual decision to abandon the ship.
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