She was divided into three classes of passengers: first, second, and third. The 325 first-class passengers were the extremely wealthy of society including Isador and Ida Straus, owners of Macy’s department store, and John Jacob Astor, the richest man in the world at the time. A first-class ticket cost up to $4,350 each, or $83,200 today.
Second class on the Titanic was like first class on other ships of the time. These 285 passengers were schoolteachers, shopkeepers, and well-to-do families. A second-class ticket cost $60, or $1,200 today.
Third class was the largest and poorest group of people aboard the Titanic. These 706 passengers were largely immigrants, traveling to America for the prospect of work and starting over in a new place. There were roughly 33 nationalities represented including Irish, Swedish, and Belgian. A third-class ticket cost $40, or $793 today.
Besides her luxurious accommodations, what set the Titanic apart from other ships of the time was the fact that she was “practically unsinkable.” Her hull was divided into sixteen watertight compartments, and the ship’s builders promised the ship would still float even with four of these compartments completely flooded. In case of an emergency, there were also 20 lifeboats on-board, capable of holding 1,178 people total. Unfortunately, this was roughly half the number of people booked for the Titanic’s maiden voyage.
On April 10, 1912, the RMS Titanic set sail for New York with 2,200 passengers and crew on board led by their captain, Edward J. Smith. For the next few days, passengers enjoyed the splendid ship, eating delicious meals in the dining rooms, and walking the decks. They also enjoyed the use of a new invention: the wireless telegraph. Passengers loved this new communication device, which allowed them to send messages to family and friends back home. The two wireless operators, Jack Phillips and Harold Bride, worked hard sending and receiving messages, many warning of ice in the Titanic’s path. No one seemed overly concerned about the ice. What harm could ice do to an unsinkable ship?
At 11:40 p.m., the lookouts spotted a huge iceberg right in the path of the Titanic. They sounded the warning bell, but it was too late: the iceberg scraped along the side of the great ship, ripping small holes in five of the watertight compartments. The ship’s builder, Thomas Andrews, made a quick assessment and determined that the compartments would slowly fill with water while the Titanicsank into the icy waters of the North Atlantic. The crew was ordered to begin filling lifeboats with passengers. At first, passengers could not believe that this “unsinkable” ship was in trouble and refused to board the lifeboats. Many of the first lifeboats launched with only a handful of people.
At 2:20 a.m. on April 15, 1912, the most luxurious ship in the world sank beneath the waves. More than 1,500 people were lost in the tragedy. The survivors were picked up by another cruise liner, the Carpathia, who comforted and cared for them the rest of the trip to America.
Because of the Titanic tragedy, many new safety regulations were put in place, including a mandatory law that all cruise liners must carry enough lifeboats to accommodate every passenger and crew member on board. The Titanic was lost to history until she was discovered by Robert Ballard in 1985, which allowed a new generation to become enthralled with her story once again.
Over the course of the text, how does the author develop ideas about how the tragedy could have been avoided and who was responsible?
A.
by explaining that the wireless telegraph had not been used to receive warning messages, and blame mostly belongs to the operators
B.
by explaining that the crew had not been made aware of the iceberg, and blame belongs mostly to the lookouts
C.
by explaining that the hull and watertight compartments had not worked as promised, and blame mostly belongs to the builders
D.
by explaining that the ship should not have been as large as it was, and blame belongs mostly to the captain
1 answer
The best answer is C. by explaining that the hull and watertight compartments had not worked as promised, and blame mostly belongs to the builders.
The text details the Titanic's design features that were supposed to make it "practically unsinkable," including the watertight compartments. When the ship struck the iceberg, it was revealed that the compartments did not function as intended, leading to the sinking. This indicates a failure on the part of the builders, suggesting that they bear responsibility for the tragedy due to the faulty assurances about the ship's safety features.
