Illusion vs. Reality

The book contrasts the romantic, enchanted expectations of youth with the harsh, often grim realities of life at sea, including sickness, death, and moral decay, as seen in the crew's superstitions and the captain's disillusionment.

The narrator's disillusionment with his previous sea life and the contrast between the glamour of the sea and the dreary reality of officialdom and routine.

The narrator contrasts his modest daydreams of command with the unexpected, almost miraculous reality of his appointment.