The American Prisoner

The American Prisoner is set during the Napoleonic Wars in the early 19th century a time when Britain and the United States were adversaries. The story revolves around an American sailor who is captured and imprisoned in England. The central conflict arises when this American prisoner escapes and takes refuge in the rural English countryside specifically in the Devon area where much of Phillpotts' fiction is set. The novel explores themes of loyalty love and national identity as the escaped prisoner forms bonds with the local people especially with the daughter of a local farmer. As tension builds around his discovery the narrative also examines the clash between duty to one’s country and personal connections formed during times of conflict. Phillpotts’ characteristic attention to rural life and his vivid descriptions of the Devon landscape are woven throughout the plot giving it a rich sense of place.