Pincher Martin by William Golding. Short summary

5 seconds

Lieutenant Martin is rescued after a shipwreck. He tries his best to survive. But one day sailors find his body. It turns out that he died in the first minutes of the wreck.

1 minute

After a shipwreck, Lieutenant Christopher Martin is miraculously rescued. He climbs a rocky cliff and makes a heroic effort to survive. The man runs a gutter to collect rainwater, eats mussels, and gathers seaweed to make nets for fish.

He recalls his life, working in the theater. Martin behaved disrespectfully toward his colleagues, and once tried to rape his friend Nathaniel’s future wife. Colleagues did everything to get Christopher into the army.

He goes into the service with Nathaniel. Martin hates him and tries to kill him.

Gradually the memories are replaced by delirium and hallucinations, Martin gradually goes insane. He struggles to survive, despite the severe poisoning and the appearance of strange spots on his body.

His body is found by a sailor. It turns out that the lieutenant died immediately after the crash.