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A clash between man and nature

"If I am going to be drowned-If I am going to be drowned-If I am going to be drowned, why, in the name of the seven mad gods who rule the sea, was I allowed to come thus far and contemplate sand and trees" (578).

This is the continuous thought process of the correspondent during the night. He feels he has the right to Manifest Destiny, but nature is not cooperating.

"For it was certainly an abominable injustice to drown a man who had worked so hard, so hard" (578).

Personification

The waves are "nervously anxious" to crash upon them.

The ocean is violent and snarling.

Fate is a woman who decides the course of their lives.

It feels like nature doesn't care about human lives. Within the system of Manifest Destiny, it is the American responsibility to tame nature so that humankind can prosper. In this story it takes everything for the men to even survive. They are not thinking about taking over the sea, but simply of getting away from it. However, three of the four men do survive, and so overcome nature.

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The men were able to work together while being their own selves. One man was not significantly more important than any of the others. The story followed them as a group. We learn to care for the men through their collective struggle, not through each one in particular. We only receive the name of Billie, the oiler, to seemingly emphasize the moment of his death.

While one man would have given up, the four men were able to keep each other going, both physically and mentally.

Individualism is an important aspect of the American spirit, but accomplishing Manifest Destiny would have taken everyone.

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Was it important for the oiler to die?

What is the significance of the title "The Open Boat?"

How does "The Open Boat" encourage Manifest Destiny?

Would the story apply to today's view of Manifest Destiny?