Father's Final Mission

Doctorow ends Ragtime with a wrap up on each of the characters. One of the more intriguing endings to the characters is that of Father. The narrator says that Father was one of the Americans on the Lusitania who lost their lives. The ship was said to be a merchant ship that left New York for Liverpool on May 1, 1915. A few days later, the ship got closer to Europe, where German U-boats then torpedoed it. It was later revealed that the Lusitania was secretly carrying explosives from the United States to the British, to help them in their war against Germany. The narrator said that Father was the one overseeing the passage of the weapons to Britain, which “undoubtedly contributed to the monstrous detonations in the ship that preceded its abrupt sinking”(318). The narrator also turns to first person right after that for the first time in the book. The use of “I” in the paragraph following Father’s death draws extra attention to this passage and gives more life to the text. It is interesting that Doctorow decides to include Father in this pivotal part of American history. Many argue that the sinking of the Lusitania was one of the primary reasons for pushing America towards joining the First World War. Citizens were upset that American lives had been lost, and said that it was time to take down the Germans. The problem with this is that America wasn’t really neutral at that time. The government was supplying the British with weapons, so the Germans did have reason to shoot down the ship. However, those details were lost in the propaganda following the sinking, and Father’s reason for being on the ship was forgotten in history. Once again, Doctorow is using his characters as tools to tie in specific historical events into his plot line. Here, he is putting Father in an important position that makes him a vital part of American history. Father, a man who found success in America, ends up dying by the thing that brought him his fortune. Doctorow re-writes what happened so that he could include Father into America’s joining WWI.  This continues with the theme of American international affairs that is prominent throughout the story.

By Henry Bird

Lost Liners - Lusitania. PBS, n.d. Web. 16 May 2011.

     lostliners/lusitania.html#top>.

"The Lusitania Sunk One Year Ago Today." New York TImes 7 May 1916: n. pag. 

     The New York Times. Web. 16 May 2011.

     archive-free/pdf?res=F00614FD3F5D17738DDDAE0894DD405B868DF1D3>.

O'Sullivan, Patrick. The Lusitania: Unraveling the Mysteries. N.p.: Sheridan 

     House Inc., 2000. Print.