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The Blue Man
The leader of Eddie’s unit in the Philippines during WWII. Born into a military family during wartime, battle is at the center of the Captain’s life. The Captain is intelligent and sensible, and does everything he can to keep his unit alive during the war. While escaping captivity, the Captain shoots Eddie in the leg because he believes it is the only way he can get Eddie to leave with them. During the escape the Captain is trying to clear a path for his unit to get out, and he is killed by a landmine. In heaven, the Captain teaches Eddie that sacrifice isn’t the same as loss, but rather that it connects humans to one another and gives meaning to life.
The Captain Quotes in The Five People You Meet in Heaven
The The Five People You Meet in Heaven quotes below are all either spoken by The Captain or refer to The Captain. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 16 Quotes
Adam’s first night on earth? (…) He doesn’t know what sleep is. His eyes are closing and he thinks he’s leaving this world, right? Only he isn’t. He wakes up the next morning and he has a fresh new world to work with. But he has something else, too. He has his yesterday (…) That’s what heaven is. You get to make sense of your yesterdays.
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Sacrifice is a part of life. It’s supposed to be. It’s not something to regret. It’s something to aspire to.
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Sometimes when you sacrifice something, you’re not really losing it. You’re just passing it on to someone else.
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The Captain Character Timeline in The Five People You Meet in Heaven
The timeline below shows where the character The Captain appears in The Five People You Meet in Heaven. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 13
...voice call to him from the trees. Suddenly finds himself in the trees with the Captain, whom he served under in the Philippines. The Captain confirms that he is Eddie’s second...
(full context)
The novel flashes back in time. Eddie and his unit—Rabozzo, Morton, Smitty, and the Captain—are in the Philippines and are being held captive by enemy soldiers. While Rabozzo screams in...
(full context)
Chapter 15
In heaven, the Captain asks Eddie if he remembers how he got out of the village fire, and Eddie...
(full context)
The Captain tells Eddie that the only protection he could offer his men was his mantra that...
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Chapter 16
Eddie expresses his sadness that the Captain died so young, and his guilt that the Captain has been waiting for him in...
(full context)
The Captain tells Eddie that he is there to teach him about the importance of sacrifice. He...
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...that people waiting in heaven can make it look as they wish. He asks the Captain why he chose to make his heaven the battleground. The Captain explains that having grown...
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