Titanic

Gabbert references the sinking of the Titanic in "Magnificent Desolation." She cites her experience watching a simulation of the tragedy online as the inception of her interest in disasters. At first, the YouTube video simply inspires Gabbert to further research the Titanic story. With time, however, the simultaneous tragedy and magnificence of the Titanic event gives way to Gabbert's more obsessive interest in studying catastrophes.

"Falling Man"

"Falling Man" is a photograph of a jumper taken on 9/11. Gabbert references the photo in her essay "Magnificent Desolation." After finishing her Titanic research, Gabbert starts to explore 9/11, and the ways in which it was represented in the media. She is particularly taken by the haunting photographs of the jumpers, those individuals who leapt from the towers' top floors because they could not escape. "Falling Man" evidences the simultaneous awe and horror of tragedy, which Gabbert is considering throughout the...