Jonathan Hollom (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
awhitecrow) wrote2011-10-27 11:20 pm
awhitecrow) wrote2011-10-27 11:20 pm
[ ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
theoregontrail application ]
PLAYER
NAME/NICKNAME: Lynn
AGE: 23
PERSONAL LJ:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
classicspector
TIMEZONE: Central Standard Time
EMAIL ADDRESS: drowsyaldolpho@yahoo.com
IM SCREENNAME AND SERVICE: celia0sword [AIM]
CHARACTER
NAME: [Jonathan] Hollom
(first name is never revealed in canon)
AGE: 29
FANDOM/MEDIUM: Master & Commander: Far Side of the World, live action movie
CANON PULL-POINT: just before going on deck before his death
ABILITIES: He's a sailor! Knots and navigation are something he knows very, very well. He can also sing quite well.
CHARACTER BACKGROUND:
[Jonathan Hollom was born to Jonathan and Elizabeth Hollom in 1775. He is the third of five children, and the only boy. Since he was twelve, Jonathan wanted to make ministry his life's work, and he could often be found in the small town's church. The vicar schooled him, in addition to the private lessons his Army father could easily afford tutors to provide him. Despite his son's wishes, Jonathan Hollom insisted that he would have one son of his in the military, and since Jonathan had never had any brothers, it would be the younger Jonathan himself.
In 1790, when he was 15, Jonathan joined the Royal Navy to satisfy his father, even though the man had expressed a particular interest in Jonathan serving in the Army. He served under Captain Reginald Mark for four years as a volunteer on a small sloop, called the Morning Light. At the beginning of his fifth year, Captain Mark promoted him to midshipman.
Jonathan left Morning Light in 1793, as the war with France raged. He was assigned to a frigate, the Golden Hind. The captain recommended him, quiet as he was, to take the lieutenant's test the first time they put into Portsmouth. Jonathan failed badly, unable to answer the questions placed before him... even though an hour before and an hour later, he knew the answers. Jonathan stayed with the Golden Hind and, in 1801, tested for lieutenant again. He failed for a second time.
1802 found Hollom transferred back to a sloop, the Cecilia. He adjusted well to the change, the ship expected for convoy work rather than heavy battle. He did not distinguish himself, but he did his duty and did so promptly. While there were no commendations in his notes, there were no reproaches.
Finally, in 1805, he was in Portsmouth at the same time that the Surprise, captained by Jack Aubrey, was, and the frigate was looking for men-- including midshipmen. The Cecilia had dispatched her crew, and the captain urged them to find other positions, even though he tried to say that the decommissioning of the Cecilia was entirely temporary. Jonathan was taken on to the crew of the Surprise just before she set sail, following orders to chase the elusive French Acheron.]
After seven weeks, the Acheron appeared in the middle of the night and battered the Surprise. Jonathan, officer of the watch at the time that the ship appeared, was whispered about for hesitating on ordering a beat to quarters, leaving the order to the younger Midshipman Callamy.
After a second attack, Captain Aubrey managed to come up behind the Acheron... and the ships sailed into a storm. Jonathan was ordered to assist one of the crew with the sails, but before he could reach the man, the mast broke just above him. William Warley was lost to sea after the wreckage had to be cut away.
The waves stilled and the wind vanished. The exhausted crew started looking for something to blame, and the unranked men decided on the cause-- there was a Jonah on board. Someone among them had angered God, and there would be no good fortune until that person was dealt with. Unfortunately for Jonathan, superstition and a disregard for him made him the prime suspect.
Things came to a head when Joseph Nagel, a carpenter's mate, was drunk enough to not only knock shoulders with Jonathan and offer no apology but to fail to salute him. Captain Aubrey saw, though Jonathan would have ignored it if he could have, and ordered the man taken below. Nagel was marked as a defaulter, the punishment for insubordination was twelve lashes with the cat. Captain Aubrey tried to instill a sense of leadership in Jonathan and dismissed the man after a talk.
After Nagel was flogged, the crew made a show of saluting Jonathan, but following him as he went by in the lower decks. Outnumbered, Jonathan had a minor panic attack. Midshipman Blakeney fetched the ship's surgeon, the physician Stephen Maturin, who concluded that nothing was physically wrong with Jonathan. Outside the room where he was being allowed to rest, Jonathan heard the captain's voice. "Sailors can abide a great many things, but not a Jonah." The knowledge that even his captain thought him the cause of their troubles was too much.
That night, after overhearing whispers of the crew that his watch would bring the Acheron back again, Jonathan took his place on deck. After a brief conversation with Midshipman Blakeney, Jonathan picked up a cannon ball and, holding it in his hands, jumped from the ship.
(Hollom's past, prior to being on the crew of the Surprise, is entirely unknown. The background provided here is what I feel is most likely given his situation and temperament in the movie.)
CHARACTER PERSONALITY:
Hollom is best suited for the quiet life of a landsman, perhaps in the role of merchant, farmer, or even clergy. He is a quiet man with strong empathy and sympathy for his fellow man. He listens to others and can provide gentle support or simply an ear for trouble. He encourages those who try and helps those who either ask for it or seem to want it. He is a religious man, though it seems he has adapted his own view on religion, one that does not condemn everything that others who hold as sinful.
As a Navy man, though, Hollom is ill-suited for his position. He might have been an acceptable volunteer-- quick to take orders and deferential to his lawful superiors. Promoted to midshipman, though, the flaws in his personality (for an officer, at least) made themselves visible. He lacks confidence in himself and his judgement. His orders often sounded like requests, which amused his subordinates and made him an object of slight ridicule among his superiors. He can handle a crisis if he is acting on orders. However, asking him to make a critical decision in a hurry guarantees that he will freeze.
Hollom lacks any real ambition. He was content as a rating and as a midshipman, worrying only about promotion to lieutenant when others made him feel that he was not progressing as he ought to be. His fear of disappointing others, ease of ability to be made to feel guilty, suceptibility to suggestion, and strong desire to please others and be liked means he caves under pressure, ignores insults, and is generally an easy target for bullies. He tends to be seen as something of a joke on most of the ships he serves on. When malice is added to the equation (as it was on the Surprise), it is easy to make Hollom accept the blame for things far outside his control. For example, he believed as much as the others did that he was cursed and bringing bad luck to the ship.
WORLD: Jonathan Hollom is in the British Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. Specifically the year 1805. He is a midshipman, basically an officer-in-training.
OCCUPATION:
Pastor.
SAMPLES
THIRD PERSON:
Jonathan Hollom sat awake as the fire in the pit died down, the last desperate crackling of the embers piercing the night. He had first watch tonight, four hours until he woke up his replacement and slept for the same amount. No different than the Navy.
A pistol waited on the ground beside him, and he ran his fingers over the barrel without looking to assure himself that it was still there. He listened to every sound, every movement beyond his sight. The moon and stars illuminated the night, but he knew things prowled about out of his vision. His orders were strict-- if he thought for even a moment that something was wrong, he was to wake the man beside him. Better too cautious than too bold, he'd assured Hollom.
He thought of the Acheron. He'd known he'd seen something. But then he could not name what it was, could not be certain. If he hadn't said anything, they might all have been killed, but if he'd been more sure-- if he had only been able to tell Captain Aubrey for certain what it was-- they might have been better prepared. Hollom swore to himself that would not happen again.
The howl of a wolf made him jump. Even now, he was not used to the sounds and sensations of being on land. It was storms one watched and listened for at sea. Storms or ships. There were no animal predators that could do one harm, and if your watch was alert and the night clear, it was very hard to sneak up on a ship. Not quite so with rocks and grass as far as the eye could see. Still, there was a music to it, different than the sea meeting the wood of a ship. The crickets kept a beat, and animals rustling about provided the melody.
Hollom listened for anything that felt out of place, his thin hand going between touching his gun and ghosting near the shoulder of the man sleeping beside him, just in case he had to wake him.
FIRST PERSON:
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil...
This... This place. I don't mind it terribly. It's not what I'm used to. No bells, no hierachy, landlocked America... But it's not too bad. I have a place to go. Duties to do. There's food.
I... I know some of you aren't comfortable. Don't like these conditions. But they could be worse. As long as we're careful, our supplies are good, and there's much more chance of finding fresh water on a passage like this than a voyage over the sea.
It's... It's not so bad. And if... If anyone needs help-- with anything-- let me know. I... I can try, at least.
NAME/NICKNAME: Lynn
AGE: 23
PERSONAL LJ:
classicspectorTIMEZONE: Central Standard Time
EMAIL ADDRESS: drowsyaldolpho@yahoo.com
IM SCREENNAME AND SERVICE: celia0sword [AIM]
CHARACTER
NAME: [Jonathan] Hollom
(first name is never revealed in canon)
AGE: 29
FANDOM/MEDIUM: Master & Commander: Far Side of the World, live action movie
CANON PULL-POINT: just before going on deck before his death
ABILITIES: He's a sailor! Knots and navigation are something he knows very, very well. He can also sing quite well.
CHARACTER BACKGROUND:
[Jonathan Hollom was born to Jonathan and Elizabeth Hollom in 1775. He is the third of five children, and the only boy. Since he was twelve, Jonathan wanted to make ministry his life's work, and he could often be found in the small town's church. The vicar schooled him, in addition to the private lessons his Army father could easily afford tutors to provide him. Despite his son's wishes, Jonathan Hollom insisted that he would have one son of his in the military, and since Jonathan had never had any brothers, it would be the younger Jonathan himself.
In 1790, when he was 15, Jonathan joined the Royal Navy to satisfy his father, even though the man had expressed a particular interest in Jonathan serving in the Army. He served under Captain Reginald Mark for four years as a volunteer on a small sloop, called the Morning Light. At the beginning of his fifth year, Captain Mark promoted him to midshipman.
Jonathan left Morning Light in 1793, as the war with France raged. He was assigned to a frigate, the Golden Hind. The captain recommended him, quiet as he was, to take the lieutenant's test the first time they put into Portsmouth. Jonathan failed badly, unable to answer the questions placed before him... even though an hour before and an hour later, he knew the answers. Jonathan stayed with the Golden Hind and, in 1801, tested for lieutenant again. He failed for a second time.
1802 found Hollom transferred back to a sloop, the Cecilia. He adjusted well to the change, the ship expected for convoy work rather than heavy battle. He did not distinguish himself, but he did his duty and did so promptly. While there were no commendations in his notes, there were no reproaches.
Finally, in 1805, he was in Portsmouth at the same time that the Surprise, captained by Jack Aubrey, was, and the frigate was looking for men-- including midshipmen. The Cecilia had dispatched her crew, and the captain urged them to find other positions, even though he tried to say that the decommissioning of the Cecilia was entirely temporary. Jonathan was taken on to the crew of the Surprise just before she set sail, following orders to chase the elusive French Acheron.]
After seven weeks, the Acheron appeared in the middle of the night and battered the Surprise. Jonathan, officer of the watch at the time that the ship appeared, was whispered about for hesitating on ordering a beat to quarters, leaving the order to the younger Midshipman Callamy.
After a second attack, Captain Aubrey managed to come up behind the Acheron... and the ships sailed into a storm. Jonathan was ordered to assist one of the crew with the sails, but before he could reach the man, the mast broke just above him. William Warley was lost to sea after the wreckage had to be cut away.
The waves stilled and the wind vanished. The exhausted crew started looking for something to blame, and the unranked men decided on the cause-- there was a Jonah on board. Someone among them had angered God, and there would be no good fortune until that person was dealt with. Unfortunately for Jonathan, superstition and a disregard for him made him the prime suspect.
Things came to a head when Joseph Nagel, a carpenter's mate, was drunk enough to not only knock shoulders with Jonathan and offer no apology but to fail to salute him. Captain Aubrey saw, though Jonathan would have ignored it if he could have, and ordered the man taken below. Nagel was marked as a defaulter, the punishment for insubordination was twelve lashes with the cat. Captain Aubrey tried to instill a sense of leadership in Jonathan and dismissed the man after a talk.
After Nagel was flogged, the crew made a show of saluting Jonathan, but following him as he went by in the lower decks. Outnumbered, Jonathan had a minor panic attack. Midshipman Blakeney fetched the ship's surgeon, the physician Stephen Maturin, who concluded that nothing was physically wrong with Jonathan. Outside the room where he was being allowed to rest, Jonathan heard the captain's voice. "Sailors can abide a great many things, but not a Jonah." The knowledge that even his captain thought him the cause of their troubles was too much.
That night, after overhearing whispers of the crew that his watch would bring the Acheron back again, Jonathan took his place on deck. After a brief conversation with Midshipman Blakeney, Jonathan picked up a cannon ball and, holding it in his hands, jumped from the ship.
(Hollom's past, prior to being on the crew of the Surprise, is entirely unknown. The background provided here is what I feel is most likely given his situation and temperament in the movie.)
CHARACTER PERSONALITY:
Hollom is best suited for the quiet life of a landsman, perhaps in the role of merchant, farmer, or even clergy. He is a quiet man with strong empathy and sympathy for his fellow man. He listens to others and can provide gentle support or simply an ear for trouble. He encourages those who try and helps those who either ask for it or seem to want it. He is a religious man, though it seems he has adapted his own view on religion, one that does not condemn everything that others who hold as sinful.
As a Navy man, though, Hollom is ill-suited for his position. He might have been an acceptable volunteer-- quick to take orders and deferential to his lawful superiors. Promoted to midshipman, though, the flaws in his personality (for an officer, at least) made themselves visible. He lacks confidence in himself and his judgement. His orders often sounded like requests, which amused his subordinates and made him an object of slight ridicule among his superiors. He can handle a crisis if he is acting on orders. However, asking him to make a critical decision in a hurry guarantees that he will freeze.
Hollom lacks any real ambition. He was content as a rating and as a midshipman, worrying only about promotion to lieutenant when others made him feel that he was not progressing as he ought to be. His fear of disappointing others, ease of ability to be made to feel guilty, suceptibility to suggestion, and strong desire to please others and be liked means he caves under pressure, ignores insults, and is generally an easy target for bullies. He tends to be seen as something of a joke on most of the ships he serves on. When malice is added to the equation (as it was on the Surprise), it is easy to make Hollom accept the blame for things far outside his control. For example, he believed as much as the others did that he was cursed and bringing bad luck to the ship.
WORLD: Jonathan Hollom is in the British Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. Specifically the year 1805. He is a midshipman, basically an officer-in-training.
OCCUPATION:
Pastor.
SAMPLES
THIRD PERSON:
Jonathan Hollom sat awake as the fire in the pit died down, the last desperate crackling of the embers piercing the night. He had first watch tonight, four hours until he woke up his replacement and slept for the same amount. No different than the Navy.
A pistol waited on the ground beside him, and he ran his fingers over the barrel without looking to assure himself that it was still there. He listened to every sound, every movement beyond his sight. The moon and stars illuminated the night, but he knew things prowled about out of his vision. His orders were strict-- if he thought for even a moment that something was wrong, he was to wake the man beside him. Better too cautious than too bold, he'd assured Hollom.
He thought of the Acheron. He'd known he'd seen something. But then he could not name what it was, could not be certain. If he hadn't said anything, they might all have been killed, but if he'd been more sure-- if he had only been able to tell Captain Aubrey for certain what it was-- they might have been better prepared. Hollom swore to himself that would not happen again.
The howl of a wolf made him jump. Even now, he was not used to the sounds and sensations of being on land. It was storms one watched and listened for at sea. Storms or ships. There were no animal predators that could do one harm, and if your watch was alert and the night clear, it was very hard to sneak up on a ship. Not quite so with rocks and grass as far as the eye could see. Still, there was a music to it, different than the sea meeting the wood of a ship. The crickets kept a beat, and animals rustling about provided the melody.
Hollom listened for anything that felt out of place, his thin hand going between touching his gun and ghosting near the shoulder of the man sleeping beside him, just in case he had to wake him.
FIRST PERSON:
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil...
This... This place. I don't mind it terribly. It's not what I'm used to. No bells, no hierachy, landlocked America... But it's not too bad. I have a place to go. Duties to do. There's food.
I... I know some of you aren't comfortable. Don't like these conditions. But they could be worse. As long as we're careful, our supplies are good, and there's much more chance of finding fresh water on a passage like this than a voyage over the sea.
It's... It's not so bad. And if... If anyone needs help-- with anything-- let me know. I... I can try, at least.