Open boat
*Open Boat* This short story refers to broader themes of man’s existential situation and relationship to nature. The opening line of the story indicates the existential disembodiment experienced by the shipwreck survivors. They are so consumed by their trouble that they are unaware of something so apparent as the sky’s color. In addition, by not often using their names (and referring to them as their professions instead), the writer expands the scope of the story. The reader can more closely identify with the four men. Their obscure naming renders them more anonymous and therefore relatable and generalized.
In the first part the moods of the men fluctuate from anger at their desperate situation, to a growing empathy for one another and the sudden realization that nature is indifferent to their fates. The Open Boat" scrutinizes the position of man, who has been isolated not only from society, but also from God and nature. The struggle between man and the natural world is the most apparent theme in the work,[15] and while the characters at first believe the turbulent sea to be a hostile force set against them, they come to believe that nature is instead ambivalent.
At the beginning of the last section, the correspondent rethinks his view of nature's hostility. She did not seem cruel to him, nor beneficent, nor treacherous, nor wise. But she was indifferent, flatly indifferent. The correspondent regularly refers to the sea with feminine pronouns, pitting the four men in the boat against an intangible, yet effeminate, threat;
** Nature’s Indifference to Man the idea that nature is indifferent to man by showing that it is as randomly helpful as it is hurtful. For every malevolent whim that the men suffer, they experience an unexpected good turn in the form of a favorable wind or calm night. The fact that the men almost seem to get assistance from nature destroys the notion of nature as an entirely hostile force. Nothing highlights this point so much as the
In the first part the moods of the men fluctuate from anger at their desperate situation, to a growing empathy for one another and the sudden realization that nature is indifferent to their fates. The Open Boat" scrutinizes the position of man, who has been isolated not only from society, but also from God and nature. The struggle between man and the natural world is the most apparent theme in the work,[15] and while the characters at first believe the turbulent sea to be a hostile force set against them, they come to believe that nature is instead ambivalent.
At the beginning of the last section, the correspondent rethinks his view of nature's hostility. She did not seem cruel to him, nor beneficent, nor treacherous, nor wise. But she was indifferent, flatly indifferent. The correspondent regularly refers to the sea with feminine pronouns, pitting the four men in the boat against an intangible, yet effeminate, threat;
** Nature’s Indifference to Man the idea that nature is indifferent to man by showing that it is as randomly helpful as it is hurtful. For every malevolent whim that the men suffer, they experience an unexpected good turn in the form of a favorable wind or calm night. The fact that the men almost seem to get assistance from nature destroys the notion of nature as an entirely hostile force. Nothing highlights this point so much as the