Unsinkable

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death. 

Aboard the RMS Carpathia, the 706 survivors from the sinking of the RMS Titanic stare out at the empty water in shock. Seven hours earlier, the Titanic collided with an iceberg and sank, though it had been described as unsinkable. The watchers spot movement in the sea; they are hopeful that it’s a survivor but then disappointed when it is only a deck chair. The people can’t believe that this is all that’s left of the massive steamship. They wonder, “[H]ow could so much have become so little?” (2).

Almost a month earlier in Belfast, Ireland, unhoused youths Paddy Burns and Danny Sullivan pickpocket a set of crisp bank notes from a wealthy man. While Paddy wants to spend the money on food, Danny says that they need to be careful because merchants will realize that the money is stolen if two ragged boys try to use it. The boys head to the local shipyard in search of people to pickpocket. Paddy finds a mark, but Danny stops him, identifying the rich-looking man as Thomas Andrews—the designer of the Titanic. Danny read that the ship’s fourth smokestack is a fake and asks Andrews if it’s true.