46 pages 1 hour read

Mitch Albom

The Stranger in the Lifeboat

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2021

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Themes

Justice Among Different Classes and Social Groups

When the novel opens the reader is unaware of the various backgrounds of the characters; all that is revealed at first are the names of the survivors, and a few small details about a few of them (like which have children, for instance). Rather quickly, however, the interactions between figures reveals the disparate backgrounds of each. Some are present on the boat because they are famous, some because they are extremely wealthy and influential, others in the lifeboat however, served as deckhands and part of the crew.

Part of the drama and tension of the narrative is how this disparate group of men and women from different—even competing—social and economic classes are now constrained by equitable circumstances. In the middle of the ocean, with only a thin layer of rubber between them and certain death, everyone is equal. While most seem not to take note of this fact, it does cause some explicit tension and even violence.

During a conversation where the group is sharing who they are and how they got on the lifeboat, Jason Lambert bursts out in frustration at the seeming helplessness of the situation:

‘And you, scribble boy.

Related Titles

By Mitch Albom

Study Guide

logo

Finding Chika

Mitch Albom

Finding Chika: A Little Girl, an Earthquake, and the Making of a Family

Mitch Albom

Study Guide

logo

For One More Day

Mitch Albom

For One More Day

Mitch Albom

Study Guide

logo

Have a Little Faith: A True Story

Mitch Albom

Have a Little Faith: A True Story

Mitch Albom

Plot Summary

logo

The First Phone Call from Heaven

Mitch Albom

The First Phone Call from Heaven

Mitch Albom

Study Guide

logo

The Five People You Meet In Heaven

Mitch Albom

The Five People You Meet In Heaven

Mitch Albom

Study Guide

logo

The Little Liar

Mitch Albom

The Little Liar

Mitch Albom

Study Guide

logo

The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto

Mitch Albom

The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto

Mitch Albom

Study Guide

logo

The Next Person You Meet in Heaven

Mitch Albom

The Next Person You Meet in Heaven

Mitch Albom

Study Guide

logo

The Time Keeper

Mitch Albom

The Time Keeper

Mitch Albom

STUDY + TEACHING GUIDE

logo

Tuesdays with Morrie

Mitch Albom

Tuesday’s with Morrie: An Old Man, A Young Man, and Life’s Greatest Lesson

Mitch Albom