I clearly remember being introduced to the Titanic with James Cameron’s film. At only 10 years old, the imagery of the bow singing underneath the waves and the water violently gushing into the grand staircase became permanently engraved in my mind. This propelled me to look for more information online, where I found further footage on YouTube. This included bits of new documentaries featuring Cameron’s exploration of the wreck and the digital recreation of its sinking to the bottom of the ocean. My interest in the Titanic took on a forensic quality — I felt intrigued by the presence of such a monumental steel structure laying in the dark, deep Atlantic ocean, twisted and plagued by rusticles. Perhaps this was morbid curiosity stemming from my submechanophobia — the fear of man-made objects submerged in water — but beside this being a potential anchor, what kept me returning for more was not the wreck itself, but the secrets it holds within.
The hypnotising beauty of the Turkish Baths’ blue tiles, perfectly preserved in place despite the ship’s impact on the sediment, were thrilling to discover. How the air waves were bursting alive for hours as the Titanic’s wireless operators incessantly called for help and the Carpathia’s subsequent limit breaking dash to the rescue, to me that’s heroism at its best. That chilling account of an unlikely survivor that was swallowed by water gushing into one of the funnels leading to the ship’s core only to be saved by a burst of hot wind from inside the ship’s bowels and sparing his life, almost hard to believe. There are a thousand more bits of the same story, and they all connect and form a part of a larger picture. All of them fascinate me. They all live in my mind.
I could go on for a thousand more words talking about everything that fascinates me about the Titanic — my friends can testify on that one. But after giving it a lot of thought and finding the relation it has to my present life, I’ve discovered that, for me, it’s the witnessing of a grand tale composed of thousands of parts, stories, lives, and more. Facts and myths, fantasies and realities; the abyssal gap of what events transpired is completely surreal to me, because we will never know exactly what it was like — we only have glimpses into it.
I think that the history of how the Titanic sunk is so well known because of the impact it had on people. From the passengers and crew that perished, to the heroes that rose to the occasion, this tale lives through the eyes of history, which is told and lived by people. It might be an odd thought but, I am people. Everything I learn about the lives of those who were a part of this event ultimately gains another life through me. The collection of information I’ve gained on the topic throughout the years is ultimately to reconstruct and connect with a story that I relate to.
The Titanic is special to me because of what it has taught me. I’m certain we all know that Titanic was called “unsinkable,” and how this brought more shock when the news broke that it had sunk on its maiden voyage. There have been plenty of situations in my life that, in retrospect, I realize I was taking at face value without question. Because hey, this ship can’t sink, right? I’ve learned to never forget that everything can sink. Understanding what led to the sinking also taught me that no tragedy originates from a single action; it is always made of a long series of events that create the ultimate catastrophic coincidence. Now, I aim to understand all the moving parts that lead to a catastrophe. The answer is always in the details.
Ultimately, the Titanic is not only a special interest of mine, but a reflection on human actions and human consequences, that in this case left behind a mammoth metal monument 3.8 kilometres beneath the waterline. I think that’s why I keep returning to it — it always has more secrets to tell.
