The Ocean Is A Stubborn Old Monster

The Open Boat, written by Stephen Crane is discusses the journey of four survivors that were involved in a ship wreck. The oiler, the cook, the captain, and the correspondent are the survivors that make onto a dingey and struggle to survive the roaring waves of the ocean. They happen to come across land after being stranded in the ocean for two days and start to feel a sense of hope that they would be rescued anytime soon. They began feeling down as they realize nobody was going to rescue them and make an attempt to reach shore. The story discusses an external conflict of man vs nature to help state clearly the central idea. The central idea of the story conveys man’s success against nature when ones’ abilities are combined together to increase the chances of survival. The use of 3rd person limited omniscience and character analysis helps to explain how the journey of the men’s survival to get out of the ocean and reach shore is able to succeed while Stephen Crane uses symbolism to demonstrate the unity created amongst the survivors.

Thoughts of drowning run rampant in every man’s mind on that boat. At dawn, the men decided that their only chance is to row toward the distant shore again and swim when the boat finally capsizes.

April 14th, 2016, 10:00 pm, on board the Norwegian Dawn. Jackson Shloo and his wife were at dinner, at the McDonald's on board. The rest of the restaurants were closed or too crowded at this hour to get a table. After their “meal,” they decided to have the night of their life, party in the club, then at Midnight go to the ship deck and watch the waves. Their kids were in their room on the ship, fast asleep, nothing could wake them up. Jackson didn’t know that he would never see them again, forever. 11:00 pm. Jackson and his wife were at the club, not drinking, but just dancing, nothing seemed different, out of the ordinary, deadly and life changing.

Alistair MacLeod’s “The Boat” is a literary success on many levels. His ability to evoke mood, sustain a meaningful theme and a strong setting make this piece particularly impressive.

There wasn’t time for all her questions. It took all Gabe and Steve’s strength on one of the big ‘oars or horns’ and the Captain on the other one to get the boat pushed off from the sticky bottom of the loading dock. As the heavily laden boat moved into the open water, Alma noticed water seeped between the top of the bottom two boards. She took a moment to bend her head in prayer while the Captain steered with the long aft pole and both men worked the long sweeps to get the 16’ wide boat righted into the channel. She wasn’t sure, but guessed it was over three times as long as its

We stood on the beach watching the ship sail away from us, they refused to take us any further. So there we stood watching, waiting, and praying for the best. It was just us women and children, the men had gone ahead and scouted out the area. We could still just barely see the ship on the horizon, fading into the distance. None of us dared to more for fear of losing sight of it, so we stood there, and did not move until none of us could see it. Then we stood some more, and waited until the men came back saying it was all clear. We all turned around at the same time and didn’t dare look back, our new life had begun, and that meant we were on our own.

Day two on the journey that will lead to the triangle. The winds yet to cease, and we zip along on this two week journey. Walking along the edge of the boat, the familiar smell of salt fills my lungs. I put my hands behind my back and walk to the bow of the ship. Standing there, I look ahead. It seems like I’m floating above the water, traveling at speeds beyond the human capability. I walk back under the deck into the stuffy, warm, room that I share.

Now, with the clear sunlight , the four men finally address their situation. The captain is lying injured in the bow of the boat, and the The rough January sea is tossing the men around the boat, rising high over the gunwales. The oiler and the correspondent are rowing, trying to get to Mosquito Light Inlet, where there is a lifesaving station. As the day goes on, the men become silent. The captain encourages them. “We’ll get ashore all right,” he says. As they row, seabirds fly over them, flying in groups next to them, one even coming close enough to be waved off. The men cuss at it, thinking it is a bad omen, or bad sign. After quite some time of rowing, the captain spots the lighthouse in the horizon. The crew then rigs up a sail , made from the captains jacket, to help them get to shore quicker and easier. They are very tired and sore from rowing all day. As they get closer to the lighthouse, the wind dies down. thus

Unknown as what might be ahead all four men embrace the hearty sea at full force working hard to break through the endless waves. The correspondent and the oiler rowed together as the cook bailed out water and the captain laid in the bow of the boat injured but able to give orders. All four men working fiercely, but questioning their fate as they embrace the open ocean in a dinghy described to be as big as a bathtub. “The mind of the master of a vessel is rooted deep in the timbers of her, though he command for a day or a decade; and this caption had on him the stern impression of a scene in the grays of dawn of seven turned faces, and later a stump of a topmast with a white ball on it, that slashed to a fro at the waves, went low and lower, and down.” This expression told from the narrative portrays the caption who is “the mind of the master of the vessel” to be hopeless which has everyone in the dinghy questioning their survival.

Callum Roberts set himself the difficult task of cataloguing evidence that today’s oceans are depleted and struggling against overfishing and human influence, while still remaining optimistic about the future of the world’s oceans in his book The Unnatural History of the Sea. Roberts begins by painting a picture of the oceans as they may have been before human influence had drastically depleted species and changed ecosystems through fishing. From this point, he maps out centuries of development in fishing and shows how drastically changed and depleted the world’s oceans are today because of human exploitation. With the explanation of modern day fishery policy and a strong case against the practice of trawling, Roberts shows how humanity continues to exploit the ocean as if it were an endless resource. In spite of all this, the author, in the end, attempts to develop a positive outlook by explaining what can be done to stop the rapid decimation of fisheries, including reevaluation of fishery regulations and development of marine reserves.

“The pain we felt at sea, it dies away; much like the tide. We never got to see the tide much... did we? All of them years spent waking up... to the deep, blue ocean. We were still in our teenage years when we joined. Both fifteen, I believe. Nobody made us do it. We sought adventure; our birthright in exploring the world... defending our land. Being of use to somebody – anybody – who could give us... praise. I know your sailing life didn't end with The Manic Giant. I know you carried on, exploring and weeping; drinking as you done both. You believed that by continuing in your... adventures at sea, a time would come when you could either put the trouble... behind you, or be inflicted by a new one to replace it. Which one did you hope

Kirro peered into the heavens with a sense of defiance and uncertainty for what was to come. Flecks of missing paint littered the ardent fishing craft, as Kirro kneeled against the oncoming gale of easterly winds. In less than two hours, the sky began to unleash vehement waves that nearly capsized the valiant skiff with every surge. Kirro clung to the stiff’s redwood mast while his father fearlessly piloted against the ever-worsening blackness of the sky. Untethered supplies buoyed along the surface as alarming amounts water lapped

“When it came night, the white waves passed to and fro in the moonlight, and the wind brought the sound of the great sea’s voice to the men on the shore, and they felt they could then be interpreters” (Crane 370). “The Open Boat,” written by Stephen Crane, describes the journey of four men stranded in a dinghy in the middle of the ocean and the hardships that had to be faced in order to survive. This story is not only a riveting story, keeping readers on the edge of their seat, but the story also makes the reader realize how precious life truly is. Sometimes people have a tendency to take life as a grain of salt and do not think about the realization that life can be taken away within the blink of an eye. As in “The Open Boat,” the crew

I headed out to the water after setting up my towel. The shock of the frigid water took my breath away and I was momentarily stunned. However, I quickly recovered; finding my body adjusts rapidly to the cold water. I waded a few feet into it before leaning forward and swimming out. I didn't dare to go too far though, instead turning to swim parallel to the shore. I was comforted by the sounds of the ocean; the rhythmic pounding of the waves represses all of my worries. I looked into the cloudless cerulean blue sky and see the perfection of life. Just when I was starting to get tired and wanted to go back to the shore, I saw something.

As I left behind the somber forest, I now recognized an appreciation for nature that I did not realize I had. I now knew there was more to nature than just trees and animals, but also I found the