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Perfect Storm Essay

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The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger is an account of an immense storm and its destructive path through the North Atlantic. In late October of 1991, crews of several different fishing ships left their port for their final haul. Little did they know that they would soon cross paths with one of the greatest storms ever recorded. This particular storm would create huge swells, high winds, and hard rain. The system, was said to be a “perfect storm” because all of the elements were just right to create the worst imaginable storm ever seen, “… a hundred-year event,” claimed some meteorologists. These types of storms are caused when: “Warm air is less dense than cool air; it rises off the surface of the ocean, cools in the upper atmosphere, and …show more content…

The boat that brings in the most fish on the coast. There is also Karen Stimpson, known to be one of the most experience sailors around. Sue Bylander is also a sailor and works with Stimpson as a graphic designer in-between fishing seasons. None of the three women are depicted as weak or hysterical during the storm. In contrast, it is Ray Leonard, the captain on the ship with Stimpson and Bylander that falls apart during the crisis. Greenlaw, Stimpson, and Bylander are strong and capable of taking care of themselves. I found Jungers’ reverse sexism unique since he makes some men out to be weak in the face of conflict. This could be for two reasons. One, he was trying to keep the novel as truthful and factual as possible. Secondly, from his experiences, women are strong and diligent and wanted to depict them as such in his writing.

The book is littered with explanations about fishing. I admit that I frequently got lost in these passages. This knowledge is an important element of the story. When a component of the boat malfunctions, readers know the significance of this to the sailors. Without this, the book would have provided a message that only other sailors could understand. Junger, by supplying this information, wants to make sure that all readers can fully grasp the danger and suspense of the book.

It makes one wonder about these tough, resourceful and experienced sailors, and their judgment for being out fishing in this weather, at that late time of year, when

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