Briefly paraphrase both poems, then proceed to the next question.
Hardy wrote his poem in 1912, the same year that the Titanic went down. Slavitt wrote his poem in 1983, more than seventy years later. If it were published in 1912, how do you think Slavitt's poem would have been received?
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In "The Convergence of the Twain," the speaker talks about the greatness of this ship. This ship was hand-crafted and was amazing. It seems that the speaker has much respect for this ship and the people on it. On the other hand, the speaker in "Titanic" is very sarcastic about the ship and the people on it. The speaker says that people are consumed with luxury, and even though the ship seemed invincible, it was not. Also, the speaker does not give respect to the men and women who died on the ship. If this poem was written in 1912, it would have been condemned and forbidden. This was a very tragic incident of the time, and the speaker does not respect that.
As CK mentioned, in "The Convergance of Twain," the speaker discusses the ship. He says the ship was smart and a great masterpiece. He also discusses how while the ship was being created, so was it's destruction--the iceburg. In the poem, "Titanic," Slavitt gives a more not so serious outlook concerning the ship and the people on it. If Slavitt would have written this poem in 1912, it would not have been taken greatly. He would have been put down for his malicious words in where his attitude is horrible. He allows it to be seen that the horrific accident was not that big of a deal. Also as CK mentions, NO respect whatsoever.
"The Convergence of the Twain" describes the sinking of the Titanic very vididly and uses lots of imagery. The tone of the poem is very reverent and detached. In "Titanic" the speaker describes what it would be like to have gone down in the ocean with the Titanic and makes light of the famous tragedy. I think Slavitt's poem would have been looked down upon by many people and would have been considered offensive if it had been published in 1912. People were very torn up about the sinking of the Titanic, and Slavitt is very irreverent about the situation.
In Hardy's "The Convergence of the Twain," the speaker describes the separate identities of the Titanic and the iceberg. Slavitt's "Titanic" is a shocking and harsh commentary on the vain, silly lives of the first class passengers aboard the wonderful ship. If published in 1912 alongside "The Convergence of the Twain," "Titanic" would have been considered irreverent and offensive. Slavitt's frank denouncement of the insouciant lives of the passengers on the Titanic is a strong argument against vanity today. In 1912, however, the poem would not have been well received as the tragedy was too close at hand for any critical reflection just yet.
In, "The Convergence of the Twain", the speaker gives a very detailed, respective opinion on the sinking of the Titanic. The speaker describes the complexity and the beauty of the ship, and how depressing it was to everyone that the mighty ship had sunk. On the other hand, Slavitt, in "Titanic" gives a very sarcastic account of the sinking of the Titanic. He jeers at the clueless first class passengers, and almost mocks the entire situation. If Slavitt's poem was published in 1912, it would have enraged Americans because the catastrophic was still heavy upon America's heart, and Slavitt approached it in a sarcastic manner.
In "The Convergence of the Twain," the speaker describes the sinking of the Titanic in great detail, as annamac mentions. The speaker uses a more serious tone because he wants his readers to understand how great of a ship the Titanic was. He takes the ship and its sinking very seriously. In "Titanic," the speaker is not as serious about the Titanic. His tone is more lighthearted. Slavitt has no concern for the people who died on this famous ship. If Slavitt's poem had been published in 1912, I believe that it would have been looked down upon and greatly criticized. "Titanic" would not have been liked by anyone at all during 1912 and the few years following. The sinking of the Titanic was a devastating event that Slavitt seems to not care about at all.
In "The Convergence of the Twain", the speaker give numerous descriptions of the ornate ship. The speaker focus' on the ship itself and the ship both before and after the wreck. He contrasts the images of the once beautiful ship to the one now resting in her watery grave. In the poem "Titanic", the speaker is more direct. He speaks of the ship but in a way of almost disrespect yet truthful. The speaker often talks about how wrapped up the people were in their luxuries and now, 2/3 of them are dead. The speaker also bring up the point that it has become more about the story and people today have almost forgotten the tragedy. I think that if the writer had published or even written a poem such as "Titanic" so soon after the tragedy, bad things would have become of that man and his reputation.
Like everybody has stated, the speaker in "The Convergence of the Twain" describes the ship as a glorious, majestic ship. He states how beautifully crafted it was, but that it was a fate for the ship to sink from the iceberg. In "Titanic", the speaker somewhat sarcastically speaks of the ship. He emphasizes that it was great in looks but poor in performance. If Slavitt had written this poem in 1912, people would have been outraged. Not only did he disrespect the ship, but he disrespected the people on it as well. The sinking was a tragedy, and Slavitt shows absolutely no sympathy.
"The Convergence of the Titanic" is more of a poem that displays the glory and awe of the ship. On the other hand, "Titanic" is a very harsh and sarcastic poem that illustrates the bad qualities of what happened on that fateful day in fall of 1912. If "Titanic" had been written in the same time period as Hardy's poem, then he would of been widely ridiculed and condemned for the harsh words against the ship. His words to the current age do not seem as spiteful because there are hardly any people left that were on the ship. Slavitt's depiction of the ship and its people is very crude and would be highly criticized if his poem was written in 1912
If "Titanic" was written in the immediate aftershock of the tragedy it would have been very offensive and taken as such. "Titanic" presents the accident as a glorious way to go out and be remembered. Overlooking the thousands of deaths actually sustained by families and loved ones of the deceased. It is quite the opposite of "The Convergence of the Twain" which focuses on the actual tragedy of the time.
In the poem "The Convergence of the Twain", the speaker describes the Titanic as a ship of greatness. It seems as though he admires the ship and the making of it. However, in the poem "Titanic" the speaker derails the ship and how it is made. As a result, he is very sarcastic with his poem's description of the ship. If this poem by Slavitt would have been published in 1912, Slavitt would have probably got death threats. Because this poem focuses how the Titanic actually failed instead of mourning about the loss of lives, Slavitt would be viewed as a terrible writer.
In "The Convergence of the Twain" the poem is more focused on how great the ship was using lots of imagery, also it is portrayed in an respective manner. In "Titanic" the speaker takes a different view, describing the sinking of the Titanic as a glorious way to die and almost making fun of the people who died and the tragedy as a whole. If "Titanic" was published in 1912, I imagine the author would not have a happy life afterward.
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