A “Titanic Myth”: Did Jack Die for Nothing!?

The iconic film Titanic was the second-highest grossing film of its time. However, the ending left some people questioning, “Could they have both survived if Rose had just shared the wood?” We decided to look into this question and get to the bottom of this crazy mystery!

Let's look into what the famous MythBusters believe, since 2003 the MythBusters have been tackling famous myths and solving them once and for all through a series of experiments and reenactments (Source). According to their episode on Titanic, both characters couldn’t have stayed dry when both of them were on top; hypothermia would have kicked in faster and they both would have died. However, they soon discovered that if one of them had tied their life jackets to the underside of the door that would have created enough buoyancy for them both to lay on top and remain 80% dry. This seems like a perfect fit, right? Although scientifically in their situation it did work, according to many fans they were simply not historically accurate in their experiment. (Source) 

 Firstly, around the time that the Titanic sank, life vests were made of cork and canvas, and therefore were a great deal heavier than the modern-day life vest. (Source) This would greatly affect the difficulty level of tying the vest to the door, and would also mean that it might not have been able to support the weight of the two of them for the hour and 40 minutes it took for the boats to arrive. Secondly, many people point out that it might not have been a door at all—it could have been either a headboard, a wall panel from the dining room,  or even a tabletop. The shape and structure of the wooden plank would certainly affect the strength of the item and how long it would have been able to remain afloat with the weight of Jack and Rose together. Thirdly, the MythBusters are both middle-aged men who were thoroughly suited up in swimming gear, and are slightly on the heavier side. But Rose and Jack were only 17 and 20 years old, wearing very lightweight clothing and were probably considerably more fit and agile. Lastly, Rose and Jack were, again, in 28 degree water: this means that hypothermia would have kicked in after around 6 minutes of being submerged. Hypothermia can have massive effects on the brain such as dizziness, memory loss, fumbling hands or lack of fine motor skills, shivering and increase in heart rate. These symptoms, which they were both presumably experiencing, could also have greatly affected their ability to think straight and come up with a strategic plan. 

These major inaccuracies could have changed the outcome of the experiment greatly.  Another issue to tackle would be the meaning of Jack’s death and the purpose of it in the movie.

Now that we know where  the MythBusters stand, let’s look into the film's creator, James cameron. Following the release of the film, James Camron’s inbox was flooded with thousands of arguing fans attempting to prove their points, demanding to know if Rose and Jack could both have safely stayed afloat. Let’s first look into James Cameron's official statement in response to the MythBusters experiment in his interview with the Daily Beast. He states, “Ok, let’s really play that out: you’re Jack, you’re in water that’s 28 degrees, your brain is starting to get hypothermia. MythBusters asks you to now go take off your life vest, take hers off, swim underneath the thing, attach it in some way that it won’t just wash out two minutes later—which means you’re underwater tying this thing in 28 degree water, and that's going to take you 5 to 10 minutes, so by the time you come back up you’re already dead....They’re crazy!” (Source)

Although both sides have their own opinions, many argue that whether Jack could have survived is irrelevant to the story, as Jack’s death was a major metaphor for the issue of class and wealth during their time period. When Jack sacrifices himself for Rose, he does it because of love; this action is the final sacrifice he makes, and it proves their love once and for all. It is also important to represent the issues of him being from a considerably lower class, both financially and socially, than Rose. Throughout the film it is shown how much their love is looked down upon and dismissed, and in the final moments before the sinking of the ship, the audience is tricked into thinking maybe they can change society’s mindset—maybe they can escape the social hierarchy! However, this final act of sacrifice proves once more how embedded these social hierarchies really were. Jack loves Rose and repeatedly tries to help her, but when it comes to metaphor, him dying was truly the only thing that could have happened. Even if she had died and he had lived, someone would have killed him for not saving her, accused him of murder.  SOURCE

In conclusion, I personally believe that both of them could have easily stayed on the raft: Rose could have gotten on the lifeboat and then forced them to go back for Jack as well. In terms of metaphor and meaning I do believe his death was placed there to hold purpose. He sacrifices himself for her because of his love, but the symbolism behind it could represent their difference in class, and how truly impossible it would have been for them to be happy if they had both survived. Leaving their experience on the sinking boat is an excellent representation of the issue in class in their time. I do believe they could have lived, and should have lived, but it would have been impossible and unrealistic, given their time frame, for them to be happy. Therefore the choice to have Jack die was a meaningful one.