The Old Love That Would Not Die

Rowland's unrequited love for Myra Gaunt haunts him across the entire book and finally becomes a door back into her life.

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The Recognition on Deck

The Recognition on Deck The Moment Rowland sees Myra Selfridge among the passengers and starts so violently that he must lean against the deck-house and catch his breath. He thinks, "Five years, now—and a look from her eyes can stop the blood in my veins." Why It Matters This is the return of the old wound. The woman he loved has become the woman who feared him. The phrase "the dying flutter of a starved love" defines his emotional state: he is still starving for her.

The Night Watch Rant

The Night Watch Rant The Moment Alone on the bridge, Rowland speaks his thoughts aloud about Myra. He says he does not love her soul, he loves her face, her voice, her charm, and he needs her. Why It Matters The rant reveals that his love has not reformed into spirituality. It is physical, human, and desperate. The first officer listens and tells the third officer, "Working on him," mistaking love-sickness for drug-induced madness.

The Dream of Myra

The Dream of Myra The Moment In his hasheesh dream, Rowland sees Myra on the opposite edge of space. She calls to him, "Come back, come back to me," but they cannot understand each other. Why It Matters The dream is a hallucination, but it carries the emotional truth of the novel: the love that failed is still reaching across an unbridgeable distance. It also foreshadows her later letter inviting him back into her life.

Her Voice in the Wreck

Her Voice in the Wreck The Moment As the Titan crashes onto the ice, Rowland hears the agonized voice of the woman he loves crying, "Myra, Myra, where are you? Come back." He recognizes her voice from his dream. Why It Matters The wreck turns the dream into reality. The woman who rejected him is now calling for the same child that he holds in his arms. This is the moment when his private love becomes a duty to her family.

The Letter and the Visit

The Letter and the Visit The Moment Mrs. Selfridge writes to Rowland that Myra asks for him continually. She writes, "I can bear it no longer. Will you not come and see Myra?" The final line: "And the man went to see—Myra." Why It Matters The old love has not died; it has been transformed. He goes not to reclaim the woman but to answer the child's need. The ending leaves his future open, with the possibility of a new bond between him and Myra's family.

first morning at sea

the night before the wreck

during the drug vision

as the Titan sinks

six months after Rowland's appointment