The Convergence of the Twain

First off, I'd like to say that if I had missed that tiny blurb "Lines on the loss of the Titanic" right under the title, I would have had no understanding of this poem. I'll say a little bit about structure, although I hardly think it's enough to fully answer question 17. Each little stanza consists of two short lines followed by a third longer line. I personally think it looks a bit like a boat sitting on the water =D Pretty nifty. Whether that's intentional or not, I think it's pretty intriguing to go to that much trouble. The overall theme of this one seems to be the destruction of human vanity, which is a very pretty little chunk of words. Ultimately, the Titanic represents the pinnacle of human vanity. It is a huge, monstrous piece of pure human engineering. It acts as a measuring stick, saying "We are humanity, we are exactly this awesome, look at our boat." It is even rumored that on the boat, t'was written "Not even God could sink it." And then it sank. Which ultimately leads to the intriguing twist. One would assume that a poem about the loss of the Titanic would be one mourning the deaths of those poor victims. On the other hand, it focuses more on stating "Ha, God showed you he could after all." The author is trying to say that the Spinner of the Years (God)...jars two hemispheres. He is literally saying that through the sinking of the Titanic, God is putting humanity back in it's place.

This is God. He puts you in your place, all while striking a disco pose.