# Nat Ames — Two Years Before the Mast character guide

> Nat Ames in Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana Jr..

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Nathaniel Ames

**First appearance:** 0004-ii

## Snapshot

A young Boston sailor aboard the Pilgrim, one of the narrator's shipmates in the forecastle and a companion of his early voyage education.

## Who they are

Nat Ames is one of the Boston boys just out of the public schools who signs aboard the Pilgrim, sharing the forecastle with the narrator and the rest of the crew. Like Dana, he is green to square-rigged life, learning his station at the braces and his place in the watch. His presence alongside the narrator gives the early voyage a sense of shared initiation, two landsmen becoming sailors together.

## In the story

### [XXVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/two_years_before_the_mast_se/chapters/xxvii)

The Cape Cod boy who initially bullies George but is defeated in the boxing match, leading to his loss of status.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/two_years_before_the_mast_se/characters/nat_ames
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/two_years_before_the_mast_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/two_years_before_the_mast_se/characters