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Jack Sparrow's compass

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Jack Sparrow's compass.
"My compass[...] is unique."
"Unique here having the meaning of broken?"
"True enough, this compass does not point north."
"Where does it point?"
"It points to the thing you want most in this world."
―Jack Sparrow, James Norrington and Elizabeth Swann[src]

Jack Sparrow's compass was a strange navigational instrument traded to Captain Jack Sparrow by Tia Dalma.

Jack's compass, traded with Tia Dalma for a sack of gold[1] seven years prior to his recieval of the Black Spot, was a compact device whose domed cover was made from pure lapis lazuli. The inside lid was detailed with a map of the heavens, and the compass disk itself was sliced from a walrus tusk.[2]

Contents

[edit] Useage

Jack Sparrow examining his compass in Davy Jones' Locker.
"How can we sail to an island that nobody can find, with a compass that doesn't work?"
"Aye, the compass doesn't point north, but we're not trying to find north, are we?"
―Joshamee Gibbs to William Turner[src]

The compass was unusual in that it did not point due north, but rather pointed to the thing the holder wanted most at that moment.[3] This worked in Jack's favor during the search for Isla de Muerta, as, desiring to obtain the treasure of Hernán Cortés held on the island, Jack simply followed the direction of the compass straight to the island.[4]

However, the effect of the compass was not limited to locations and objects, but could also indicate the user's desire towards another person. Jack was able to discern the location of Davy Jones' ship, the Flying Dutchman, through Elizabeth Swann's use of the compass, since she wanted to find William Turner, at the time serving out a debt to Jones onboard. Prior to this, the effect of the compass had been nullified by Jack's fear at being hunted by the Kraken. As Joshamee Gibbs noted, Jack was unable to determine his own heading, insisting only that the crew reach the closest possible land to evade the leviathan.[5]

Jack Sparrow with his compass.

The compass earned a measure of reknown during Jack's ownership of it, and its power ultimately attracted the attention of Lord Cutler Beckett, who wanted to use the compass to find the Dead Man's Chest, which would give him command over Davy Jones and his crew—which, in turn, would provide him with the resources to wipe the pirate scourge from the Caribbean. To this end, he enlisted Will Turner to find the compass and bring it to him, in exhange for his life and that of his fianceé.

Ultimately, Jack and Elizabeth used the compass to locate the Dead Man's Chest themselves, though its contents ended up in Lord Beckett's possession due to the machinations of former Commodore James Norrington.[5]

When Jack was sent to Davy Jones' Locker, the compass went with him, and when Jack was found by the crew of the Black Pearl, he planned on using the compass to escape. Unfortunatly, due to the fact that they were at the bottom of the sea, the compass just spun in circles, forcing Jack to bring Barbossa along.

Later, after Jack was rescued from Davy Jones' Locker, he gave the compass to Turner, before stranding him in the ocean. Will was picked up by the HMS Endeavour, and made a deal with Beckett, allowing him to use the compass to locate Shipwreck Cove. During parley held on a sandbar, Beckett returned the compass to Jack, having assembled his armada off Shipwreck Cove.

After the battle of Calypso's maelstrom, and with the Black Pearl commandeered by Hector Barbossa, Jack employed his compass in the search for the Fountain of Youth[6], although the compass pointed to Jack's bottle of rum when he opened it, indicating that Jack wanted rum more then the Fountain.

[edit] Behind the scenes

  • On the Dead Man's Chest DVD commentary, writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio note that the compass only points in Jack's "direction" when Elizabeth holds it, not at Jack himself, and on Isla Cruces, continually points at the location of the Dead Man's Chest, despite Elizabeth believing it is pointing at Jack.
  • For "Dead Man's Chest" and "At World's End" a red flurelee was added as a pointer because the compass became a more important prop.
  • In Kingdom Hearts II, the compass reveals the location of the Port Royal world's Keyhole, allowing Sora, the game's protagonist, to move on to the next world.

[edit] Appearances

[edit] Sources

[edit] Notes and references

  1. ↑ Disney Adventures
  2. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide, p14-15: "Pirate Possessions"
  3. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest DVD commentary; confirmed by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio to be the one thing the user "wants" at that moment, not their "heart's desire" as certain promotional materials claim.
  4. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
  6. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
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