And it is impossible to forget the fact that at that time, the PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) was not known from people of that time and without being sure, of course, but we can't dismiss completely the fact that the sinking must have played a part in Fleet' suicide. PTSD was not even known during World War II, and General's like Patton especially thought that soldiers just play a game to avoid combat when they were nerve-breaking on the battlefields. It almost cost Patton his job because in North Africa the slapped in the face a soldier who had lost his mind during combat. It then made a big deal and Eisenhower and the President Roosevelt called Patton back because of the bad publicity. It's History, but the fact is that when the TITANIC sank, they did know that PTSD could lead straight forward to a suicide later in life. And that was the case of few crew members and passengers (Thayer and 4 ou 5 other, if I am right).
Are you serious ??? We are talking about men who were born in 1880's, that is to say whose average age would be at least 134 years old for Fleet, and his brother-in-law would have been around the same with just few years more or less than him.
I think Titanic related PTSD had little or nothing to do with Jack Thayer's suicide. I know that he lost his father in the disaster but his statements and drawings do suggest that he retained his faculties quite well in the aftermath. He went to university, graduated, became a successful banker, married and raised a family. While it is impossible to state whether there was a Titanic scar in the back of his mind, it is generally believed that his suicide in 1945 was related to the death of his son in the Pacific Theater of World War II.
Interesting post. You bring up some interesting questions. PTSD was just called by different names then. WW1 it was called shell shock, WW2 it was called combat fatigue. After Vietnam the preferred term became PTSD. They did then and still today know about it they just don't always know the best way to treat it. Another problem I see with it is that today too many people claim PTSD for frivolous reasons. The meaning has been diluted. Just look at all the people who claim to have to have PTSD for reasons that are comical in my opinion. I guess its all what you consider to be traumatic. As for Patton some recent historians claim that Patton was suffering from it himself. Not sure I buy that theory myself. What he did was wrong but I believe it was more out of frustration because the Sicily campaign was getting bogged down at least in his mind. Patton was a 1st century general that found himself in a 20th century war. At least he didn't try to bring back decimation...
. But back to Titanic, like Arun I think it could have been a contributing scar but a lot of other factors were involved. But I don't know how one would ever be sure to what the tipping point was. Just my 2 cents worth. Cheers.
PTSD is generally associated with personal suffering rather then as a third party, including bereavement. The most often understood examples started from US POWs who underwent bad treatment at the hands of the Viet-Cong but of course there were others before and after. PTSD almost always affects behavioral pattern in the aftermath of the event, which did not happen to Jack Thayer after he lost his father in 1912. He coped with the bereavement and got on with his life, but as I said before, it might have left a scar somewhere in the confines of his mind. Therefore, loss of his son 33 years later might have acted as a 'booster' to bring about the suicidal intent and deed. His personal sorrow undoubtedly led to the suicide but IMO that is not the same as PTSD.
I have to disagree with that opinion. Fleet's experience on board the Titanic during its maiden voyage was not the sort of trauma that could have led to PTSD. He was one of the lookouts at the time, yes, but he did his duty properly as far as is known and he certainly would not have carried any guilt complex afterwards; sorrow for the loss of so many lives including colleagues, yes, but not guilt. He was rescued on an early lifeboat (#6) and so the experience on board the Titanic per se IMO had nothing to do with his suicide 53 years later.
Pretty much agree with all you said. The only thing I could add is that I've read accounts from survivors that have said listening to the screams and cries of the 1500+ people in the water never went away. It stayed with them their whole lives. My dad related something similar to me about his experiences of having to sail by torpedoed ships with survivors in the water which was also freezing. He couldn't forget it. I haven't read much about Mr. Fleet other than the general bio. But didn't he have serious health problems toward the end? Sometimes that can be the tipping factor for people to cash in their chips.
