A perceptive exposé of the chairman of the White Star Line, who instead of going down with the ship jumped into a lifeboat. Accused of cowardice, he survived hearings in the United States and England but spent his remaining 25 years in ignominy in Ireland. A fascinating biography but also a literary and social analysis - Conrad's Lord Jim is particularly cited - of the gentleman's role of honour, which obsessed the era leading up to and including WW I.
(Kathie Somerwil Ayrton - bwl 70 Autumn 2013 ) |
