Vol. 54 No. 2 (2006)
Research Article

Larger Than Life: Titanic And Her Name Heritage

PDF
  • J. Joseph Edgette
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1179/nam.2006.54.2.121

Published 2006-06-01

Copyright (c) 2006 Maney

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Abstract

Ranked as one of the worst maritime disasters of all time, the well-known story of the tragic maiden voyage of R.M.S. Titanic has been thoroughly researched and retold periodically with renewed interest through means of popular culture and literature. This article identifies, discusses, and analyzes pertinent observations that, in turn, reveal specific patterns regarding the practice of names and naming that came to light during the process of examining the gravemarkers and cenotaphs of her passengers. Beginning with the origin of the ship's name, the evolution of her nicknames, and the patterns revealed by the names of her first-class passengers, a case can be made for the role of class distinction in the preservation and replication of names held by America's aristocracy. Sources of data were confined to primary documents, archival materials, and field notes and photographs taken during the last five years spanning the United States and Canada.

PDF

References

  1. Archbold, Rick and Dana McCauley. 1997. The Last Dinner on the Titanic. New York: Madison Press.
  2. Bateman, Thomas H. 1943. Wiàener, Dunton, Pancoastiand Allied Families: A Genealogical Study with Biographical Notes. New York: The American Historical Company, Inc.
  3. Bentick-Smith, William. 1976. Building a Great Library. Cambridge, Harvard University Press.
  4. Brewster, Hugh and Laurin Coulter. 1998. 8821/2 Amazing Answers to Your Questions About the TITANIC. New York: Scholastic, Inc.
  5. Burt, Nathaniel. 1963. The Perennial Philadelphians: The Anatomy of an American Aristocracy. New York: Little and Brown.
  6. Cotterell, Arthur and Rachel Storm. 1999. The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Mythology. London: Lorenz Books.
  7. Eaton, John P. and Charles A. Hass. 1986. Titanic: Triumph and Tragedy. New York: W. W. Norton and Company.
  8. Geller, Judith B. 1998. Titanic: Women and Children First. New York: W.W. Norton.
  9. Herzberg, Max J. 1935. Classical Myths. New York: Allyn and Bacon.
  10. Heyer, Paul. 1998. Titanic Legacy: Disaster As Nedia Event and Myth. Westport, Connecticut: Praeger Publishers.
  11. Hyslop, Donald, Alastair Forsyth, and Sheila Jemima. 1994. Titanic Voices: Memories from the Fateful Voyage. New York: St. Martins-Griffin Press.
  12. Lévi-Strauss, Claude. 1963. Sructural Anthropology. New York: Basic Books.
  13. McCaughan, Michael. 1999. Ther Birth of the Titanic. Ithaca, New York: McGill-Queen’s University Press.
  14. Merideth, Lee W. 2003. 1912 Facts About Titanic. Sunnyvale, California: Rocklin Press.
  15. “Obituary for Col. Archibald Gracie.” New York Times 5 December 1912,1.
  16. O’Donnell, E. E., SJ. 1997. The Last Days of the Titanic. Niwot, Colorado: Roberts Rihehart Publishers.
  17. Shipbuilder Magazine. 1911.
  18. Spedden, Daisy Corning Stone. 1994. Polar the Titanic Bear. New York: Madison Press, Little, Brown and Company.
  19. Wells, Susan. 1977. Titanic: Legacy of the World’s Greatest Ocean Liner. New York: Time Life Books, Inc.
  20. Wheeler, George. 1973. Pierpont Morgan and Friends: the Anatomy of a Myth. Englewood cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall,Inc..
  21. Wormstedt, Bill.2002.http://home.att.net/~wormstedt/titanic