Mr. Smee in Peter Pan

Who is Mr. Smee?

Mr. Smee is Hook’s loyal boatswain and the most genial member of the pirate crew. He carries out Hook’s orders, helps execute the captain’s schemes (from plotting to bake a deadly cake to rowing dinghies with captives), and performs small domestic tasks aboard the Jolly Roger such as mending with a sewing machine. Though clearly on the pirate side—rowed in raids, present during captures, and obliged to carry out Hook’s commands—Smee is noticeably less cruel than most of the men; his manner is apologetic and oddly polite, which provides comic relief amid the island’s violence. He follows Hook’s plot to trick the Lost Boys, takes part in the raid that carries off the children, and is present during the shipboard moments of menace and panic (including the scene where the crocodile’s ticking terrifies Hook). Smee’s actions help the pirates accomplish their plans, but his temperament marks him as a foil to Hook’s brutality and to the general savagery of the crew.

In the book: Mr. Smee is Captain Hook’s bo’sun and right‑hand man, an affable and oddly courteous pirate whose bumbling good nature often provides comic relief. Loyal to Hook yet far less malicious than the rest of the crew, he serves as a foil that softens the pirates’ menace and helps highlight the story’s blend of peril and play.

Personality

Affable

He is repeatedly portrayed as courteous and bumbling, notably seen calmly mending with a sewing machine on the brig while other pirates gamble and brood.

Loyal

He obeys Hook’s orders without question, for example when Hook commands him to beat the tom‑tom during the ruse that tricks the children.

Unthreatening

Compared with the other ruffians who massacre and roughen the island, Smee’s presence and manner never carry the same menace, serving instead as a softer figure aboard the Jolly Roger.

Practical

He helps execute concrete schemes—rowing the dinghy that carries Tiger Lily and assisting in the capture and removal of the Darling house.

Character arc

Smee remains essentially the same from his first appearance to his last: a good‑natured, obedient foil to Hook’s ferocity. He participates in escalating pirate actions—a plotted lure at Mermaids’ Lagoon, the dinghy raid, the treacherous tree assault where he is ordered to beat the tom‑tom, and the final tensions aboard the Jolly Roger—but his personality does not harden or repent. Across episodes of violence and panic (notably when the crocodile’s ticking unnerves Hook), Smee’s behavior consistently emphasizes compliance rather than leadership or cruelty. He is present when Hook broods, when prisoners are brought up, and when the ship is stormed by Peter and the Lost Boys; yet he is not the architect of revenge and shows no personal transformation into villainy or redemption. In short, Smee functions as a steady, comic presence who enables Hook’s plans while retaining a kindly, unthreatening air until the pirates’ defeat and scattering.

Relationships

• Captain Hook Hook’s devoted bo’sun and right‑hand, obediently carrying out his orders while showing a deferential, almost genial demeanor toward him.
• The Crocodile Indirectly bound to the crocodile through Hook’s terror—Smee is present when the crew reacts to the creature’s ticking and Hook’s panic.
• Starkey A fellow pirate who rows with Smee in the dinghy that brings Tiger Lily to be marooned on the rock.
• Tiger Lily He helps transport her as a captive in the dinghy and is part of the group that intends to maroon her.
• Peter Pan An adversary by circumstance: Smee takes part in raids and shipboard life that pit the pirates against Peter and his raids on the Jolly Roger.
• Wendy Darling Present during the capture and carriage of Wendy and the other children, aiding in the pirates’ plot to make Wendy their "mother."

Why Mr. Smee matters

Smee functions as comic relief and a humanizing counterpoint within the pirate hierarchy. His geniality and reluctance to show the crew’s full cruelty diffuse the tale’s potential brutality and underline Barrie’s blend of peril and play. As Hook’s obedient lieutenant, Smee helps make Hook’s schemes credible while simultaneously highlighting themes of authority, performative manners, and the difference between menace and misrule in Neverland.

Chapters with Mr. Smee

• Chapter 1
• Chapter 5
• Chapter 8
• Chapter 12
• Chapter 13
• Chapter 14
• Chapter 15
• Chapter 16
• Chapter 17

More Peter Pan characters

• Peter PanProtagonist
• Wendy DarlingMajor character
• John DarlingMajor character
• Michael DarlingMajor character
• Tinker BellMajor character
• CurlyMajor character
• NanaMajor character
• NibsMinor character