The thing itself and not the myth

January 12, 2018 11:54 PM

Storm, shipwreck, families divided A. E. Stallings meditates on shipwreck in naval history, in poetry, Shakespeare, and the refugee crossings of the Mediterranean.
posted by clew (4 comments total)

Storm and the threat of shipwreck, or actual shipwreck, turn out to be the embarkation point for many narratives, and maybe one of the starting points of literature itself.

Surprised that Joseph Conrad did not receive any call-outs in that essay (brilliantly written) just surprising: Lord Jim, Nostromo, Typhoon and Other Stories.

Conrad writes quite a bit about the sea and our relationship to this force of nature. But I imagine a certain other MeFite could tell you more about that. ;-)
posted by Fizz at 6:25 AM on January 13, 2018 [1 favorite]

I think everything she cites is poetry, and Conrad may not have written any.
posted by clew at 11:53 AM on January 13, 2018 [1 favorite]

this is fabulous....
posted by Cocodrillo at 12:01 PM on January 13, 2018

I think everything she cites is poetry, and Conrad may not have written any.

Oh it may not have been within the scope of her thesis. She does refer to Defoe's novel Robinson Cruesoe. I just wanted to add his name along to the list of literary talents that addresses and works with this same subject, the sea/humanity.
posted by Fizz at 12:38 PM on January 13, 2018