African Queen: Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart
In the oppressive, humid atmosphere of the jungle, the river narrows and they become stuck in the reedy channel at the river's end. An exhausted Charlie must get into the waist-deep water and pull the boat through the shallow muck to deeper water.
They seem beaten, finished, trapped and unable to continue - famished, feverish, and bone tired. As Rose, resigned to failure, prays for mercy, the camera rises and pans away to show that they are, ironically, only a hundred yards away from the goal of their journey down the Ulanga River - the lake.
During the night, a monsoon comes. The drenching rain and windstorm raises the level of the river, breaking down trees and pushing them along in its path. The rising water lifts the mired Queen free and onto the lake. Rose and Charlie awaken to find themselves at the place they have tried so hard to reach.
Then they both see the German steamship Louisa, on the horizon, bearing down on them. They flee back into the camouflaging reeds. With renewed optimism, Charlie knocks together some makeshift torpedoes with detonators and pushes them through holes in theQueen's, prow intending to ram th e Louisa. Theyclean up the Queen, because "She ought to look her best, representing as she does, the Royal Navy."
Hevrutah Questions:
- What are the ways the practice of hope is manifest in this chapter?
- How might you practice hope in your life? Make a list of current practices or possible practices.
- What would be the challenges/obstacles to these practices?