Distinction between Cultural and Individual Significance

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I disagree with the notion that the sinking of the Titanic has no intrinsic meaning, as  Dan suggests that Wells has argued, and I’m worried that as our society is exposed to more disasters, we become increasingly numb to the significance of individual human lives and stories.  Although I agree with Wells’ point that Biel believes and argues that the sinking of the Titanic was only culturally meaningful “in that it reflected the social and ideological complexities of a particular historical moment,” I think that from the individual triumphs depicted we can divine some small, personal hints of significance inherent in the disaster itself.

As Biel points out, activists for all issues skewed perceptions of the accounts to suit their agendas.  This manipulation of facts for the purposes of activists is the subject of Biel’s chapter entitled, “The Rule of the Sea and Land.”  My favorite example of this lies in Biel’s depiction of female activists claiming heroism “at the expense of men whose class and ethnic origins were suspect” (55).  The women claimed they had to demonstrate physical strength to row their own lifeboats.  Here Biel invokes thoughts of Social Darwinism by insinuating that women felt they had to put down other marginalized groups in order to gain any credence in mainstream society.  This Social Darwinism may or may not have been noticed by those present on the boat, but Biel certainly makes the case that activists and journalists imposed it on those who were present.

By discussing and condemning the manipulation of heroic deeds before actually discussing the deeds themselves, I think Biel minimizes these deeds’ significance.  Although racist and elitist, Andrews seemed proud that she had played a part in her own survival.  For her, the sinking of the Titanic was significant.  Yet Biel focuses less on Andrews’ perception of the disaster, and more on the public’s perception of it.  As his title, Down with the Old Canoe: A Cultural History of the Titanic Disaster, suggests, Biel focuses more on reactions to, rather than personal victories within the disaster.  This is where the conflation between cultural and individual significance comes in.  It is easy to forget an event’s significance to individuals who participated, especially when compared with it historical and cultural significance.  It may even seem too easy an argument to make—of course this event was meaningful for those who experienced it.  But I don’t think that suggests that the event had no intrinsic meaning whatsoever.  The meaning was more personal than it was cultural, and it makes sense that Biel did not find that meaning, since his intent was to provide an account of only the cultural history of the sinking of the Titanic.