Related Works
This episode does not follow the plot of the corresponding chapter in C. S. Forester's Mr. Midshipman Hornblower. In the original story, the mathematically-minded Hornblower devises a plan by which he secures himself an "even chance" against a greater-skilled adversary. As the offended party, he has the choice of weapons. He asks that one of the duelling pistols be loaded while the other remains empty, the combatants having to toss for it and then stand a yard apart and fire at each other at point blank range. As it turns out, the captain has secretly given orders that neither weapon be loaded, the resulting lack of a shot blamed on a misfire, and Hornblower comes out of the duel unscathed.
The episode also incorporates material from several other stories in the novel Mr. Midshipman Hornblower. Among these are "Hornblower and the Cargo of Rice", for Hornblower's ill-fated command of the Marie Galante, and the chapter "Hornblower and the Man Who Felt Queer", for the section concerning the Indefatigable's expedition against the Papillon. The episode also diverges from the plot of this chapter in several respects, mostly related to the addition of Simpson and Kennedy to the event (in the book, Simpson is not transferred to Indefatigable, and Kennedy does not take part in the expedition).
Read more about this topic: The Even Chance
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