Stephanie Barczewski

The ship is a bewildering maze of corridors. Even the officers and the crew of the ship were not, you know, there was a new ship. Nobody was really familiar with it. So officers who had, you know, great experience at sea would say that they couldn't find their way around the ship. You know, one crewman said that he was on the ship for a week before he really knew his way around.

The ship is a bewildering maze of corridors. Even the officers and the crew of the ship were not, you know, there was a new ship. Nobody was really familiar with it. So officers who had, you know, great experience at sea would say that they couldn't find their way around the ship. You know, one crewman said that he was on the ship for a week before he really knew his way around.

And so trying to get around the ship was very, very difficult. The ship was designed to make it difficult so that steerage class passengers wouldn't accidentally wander into first or second class areas.

And so trying to get around the ship was very, very difficult. The ship was designed to make it difficult so that steerage class passengers wouldn't accidentally wander into first or second class areas.

It's not malicious intent. It's not that people in steerage are being locked down below and not allowed up to the upper decks. They just had massive disadvantages in trying to get up. And nobody thought about them, right? Nobody thought about, oh my God, there's all these people down there in steerage. What are we going to do?

It's not malicious intent. It's not that people in steerage are being locked down below and not allowed up to the upper decks. They just had massive disadvantages in trying to get up. And nobody thought about them, right? Nobody thought about, oh my God, there's all these people down there in steerage. What are we going to do?

We've got to go down there and we've got to help them and we've got to get them up.

We've got to go down there and we've got to help them and we've got to get them up.

I mean, certainly first class children would have been the absolute priority, you know, I think followed by first class women. As to someone would have valued the life of a steerage class child over a first class man, I mean, I hate to say it, but I suspect that they would not have. I think today, obviously we would see that as, you know, get the kids in the boat first of any class.

I mean, certainly first class children would have been the absolute priority, you know, I think followed by first class women. As to someone would have valued the life of a steerage class child over a first class man, I mean, I hate to say it, but I suspect that they would not have. I think today, obviously we would see that as, you know, get the kids in the boat first of any class.

And I think that's something that very much would have changed. But at the time, I think that would have been a more difficult question for people to wrestle with.

And I think that's something that very much would have changed. But at the time, I think that would have been a more difficult question for people to wrestle with.

At first, everything's very calm, right? The passengers can't really believe this is happening. As, obviously, the night goes on, more panic starts to set in, and the officers are trying to deal with that as well.

At first, everything's very calm, right? The passengers can't really believe this is happening. As, obviously, the night goes on, more panic starts to set in, and the officers are trying to deal with that as well.

this sort of ruthless gender code, right? The light teller, again, is the one who interprets the order as women and children only, right? And he interprets it in a very strict fashion. So I think it's interesting that that kind of level of ruthless genderizing, right, of who should live and who should die in terms of the Titanic story.

this sort of ruthless gender code, right? The light teller, again, is the one who interprets the order as women and children only, right? And he interprets it in a very strict fashion. So I think it's interesting that that kind of level of ruthless genderizing, right, of who should live and who should die in terms of the Titanic story.

I think at the time, he's regarded as an officer who followed orders and did what he was supposed to do.

I think at the time, he's regarded as an officer who followed orders and did what he was supposed to do.

He probably kills 100 people by not letting any men in the boats. It's idiotic, right? I mean, he's literally launching boats with empty seats in them because he's adhering to this gender code so strictly. But I'm not sure that's an indictment of him. I think it's an indictment of the sort of standards of the time. Men enjoyed a lot of privileges and powers that women simply didn't have.

He probably kills 100 people by not letting any men in the boats. It's idiotic, right? I mean, he's literally launching boats with empty seats in them because he's adhering to this gender code so strictly. But I'm not sure that's an indictment of him. I think it's an indictment of the sort of standards of the time. Men enjoyed a lot of privileges and powers that women simply didn't have.