Watchmen explained - what is the meaning of the Black Freighter?
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- Опубликовано: 1 окт 2024
- What is the meaning of the Black Freighter in Watchmen? What is the point in the pirate comic?
In this video, I aim to explain why understanding the Black Freighter is key to understanding Alan Moore's work.
Excellent analysis, thanks for sharing.
Thank you! And thanks for stopping by!
The meaning is pretty obvious. The pirate finds himself becoming the evil he’s afraid of. Everything he does to try to save his family from what he fears turns him into something his family fears. In the end, he has to embrace the inevitable. It’s a very dark vision, imagining that being corrupted is an inevitability.
If you think something is obvious youre probably wrong
I'll admit, I'm one of those that never did more than skim over the Black Freighter sections, but your analysis has convinced me to go back and read the entire series again. I've always thought that Veidt's actions were doomed, but I never realized that Moore spells that out in the story proper. Thank you!
That's great, glad you're going to have another look! Let me know what you think - it might completely different to what I said!
You either die a buccaneer hero or live long enough to see yourself become a villain pirate
One of the questions The Watchmen was trying to field is “are people doomed by fate or are they controlled by themselves?” And tales of the Black Freighter asks that same question. Was the sailor doomed by the freighter to join its crew or did he doom himself by letting his desperation transform him into a monster?
I think it does a good job dramatizing the concept that may otherwise by lost in the shuffle of the other points of the comic.
First time I read Watchmen, I found myself wondering what exactly the point of the Black Freighter chapters was up until the final between Ozymandias and Dr. Manhattan… my 13 year old mind was blown.
For what it’s worth though, my favorite side story was Dr. Long’s.
"And the worst part is... They're all just inkblots."
Still think about it to this very day.
Yeah not sure I understood it either as a teen but people told it was great so I agreed! Interesting - I was toying with doing a video on Long.
Thanks for watching!
@@HMNCLunar The thing in Long’s story that strikes me is his own juxtaposition with Rorschach and how they choose to deal with it.
Rorschach sees man’s inhumanity to man and loses everything. And he chooses to be a reflection of that inhumanity. Long sees that same inhumanity through Rorschach, loses everything, but he instead chooses to become better, as seen in his final moments where he puts himself out to keep people he doesn’t even know from hurting each other needlessly
Me too. Doctor Long is maybe the only purely heroic character in the book.
The pirate tale showed that the character had failed to realize his obsession ultimately led to atrocities that cost him his own humanity and that unstoppable ferocity was all he had left which leads him to drift to the dreaded Black Freighter.
As for Veidt, he has to think about his actions in silence and can never reclaim what he had steeped away from before the Keane Act prohibited costumed heroes. He can't claim to be a hero aloud lest he is viewed as no less a madman than Blake/The Comedian.
As for Rorschach's journal, either someone will realize what his entries reveal but question if it's right to try and explore them or because it is dimissed as a bunch of hysterical conspiracies due to being printed and distributed by what is essentially a rambling right-wing paper that would give yellow journalism a bad name.
That was my impression once I finished reading Watchmen. It is still one of the best comic book stories ever written to this day.
Neat analysis. Every time I read Watchmen, I find myself saying, "Wow, I never noticed *that* before." It truly is a magnificent story.
Cheers and couldn't agree more. Thanks for watching!
The Watchmen is such a beautiful, richly told and written comic, I love how the comic with in the comic gives the Watchman another dimension. You could easily loose your self in it and the comic is more then a comic but a short novel that can easily become of our lust for power and how it increasinlyblinds us from our humanity.
Absolutely well done! I read the series as it was published, (anyone else remember the agonising wait for the last two chapters?) and this aspect of the work isn't discussed enough...
Cheers! That's really cool, nothing like the anticipation for the next issue of a good series!
I moved to Sweden during the series' publication and managed to find a comic shop somewhere in Stockholm that stocked the issues. Still have them 😊
Any analysis of Watchmen that focuses on the way that the Black Freighter story is skipped should include some reference to the way the interstitial published works are skipped.
Moore appears to be aware that making this alternate timeline "feel real" must mean providing multiple levels of engagement with that world.
As this story is about comic book superheroes, an analogue is provided. This takes place "beneath" the level of the narrative. Just "above" the level of the narrative is the interstitial pieces.
By nesting the narrative this way, Moore shows how the story he wishes to tell is being shown at the correct level of resolution.
Just as when you have a conversation with a friend, you are not doing the conversation justice if you attend to microbes crawling on their face, nor do you attend primarily to their function within a political or ecosystem from a distance as though they themselves were microbes crawling in the face of the Earth, you do your friend the greatest service when you understand them in their terms.
Manhattan's path is that of ascending through these levels, until he is unable to reach those he is supposed to be saving. Such is the nature of one who deigns that it is proper that they rule over and make judgments on others.
Interestingly, Rorschack appears to obtain the same kind of "distance" from the human project through a kind of descent. His progress through the story is that of someone who figuratively and literally sees the world through a lens of the absolute at the lowest level -- black and white.
What is most fascinating about Watchmen is how well balanced Moore and Gibbon's attention is granted across multiple spectra. This emulates the magic of comics, as sequential art is a repetition of the memory producing capacity of the mind through the application of frames generated through association of related entities in accordance with perceived context.
The content of individual frames and the meanings and value extracted from their relationships guide our perceptions and actions. The judgments we make are dependent on the levels of story we take to be the ideal point of view at which the Truth is revealed, and it is in these conflicting ideas of what is actually happening we find the struggles of humankind illuminated.
Our understanding of Blake and Jupeczyk's relationship is granted dubious clarity through the eyes of Hooded Justice, whose perspective on the matter is muddled by his own proclivities. We question this judgment just as we question Sally's when she looks back longingly at a photograph of Blake. It seems that the level of resolution where black becomes white and white becomes black is the present moment, where observation frame towards activity from various strata can itself be seen as a maddeningly complicated fractal of infinite complexity.
We are challenged to incorporate as many elements as we can from as many perspectives as we can, because this present moment demands both judgment and action. The quality of our lives as well as whether or not we will continue to have the opportunity to make judgments and take actions depend on it.
Is it a smiling face with an unfortunate drip of red or is it a tragic drip of red, converting the childish smiling yellow face to the depiction of a perverse madman, capable of incalculable atrocities?
Unbelievable analysis. Perfect! Bravo!
I absolutely love both Jon and Rorschach as characters, and I had never found that parallel between them. It's wonderful.
I agree with everything.
In addition, and maybe you skipped over it because it's too obvious, the Black Freighter is a showcasing of the kind of morbid, horrible and depressing stuff that this writer delivers. Reading it will give you a glimpse into what kind of stuff they loaded into their fake alien broadcast.
I also like the young versus old Bernie Wrightson reference
The people who skim past the Black Freighter episodes are not really reading the Watchmen. The parallell story is vital for fully understanding the main plot.
it's interesting seeing how Moore has developed this style of interjecting in his own work. Like, the last volume of LoEG was so dense. I love how the gathered material reinforces this sense of a living world.
Damn though, I never caught the repetition of Pale Horse and the implications, and I must have read the story 50 times. Excellent catch! Oh dang and I just noticed the show was titled 'krystalnacht', a very on-the-nose reference to Nazism.
Watchmen is a masterpiece, because you can read it like a hundred times, or more, and you will always find every new detail you never noticed that makes the experience even better.
I love how the Black Freighter story in chapter 5 is interwoven with the assassination attempt on Ozymandias and the trap laid for Rorschach. The bloated corpses the sailor lashes together to make a raft, along with the people he kills in his madness when he reaches land, parallel the blood on Ozymandias's hands as he tries to prevent greater bloodshed. Issue 5 is incredible all around. I love how that one part shifts between red and green shades with each panel.
Skipping the text end pieces I can get, although not reading particular panels is baffling, and one of the joys of the Pirate comic sections is the transitions to and from it to the main narrative. Also Gibbons & Higgins art for those panels is gorgeous, the colouring in particular making it clear that it's a comic that exists within the 'real' world of the story.
I think it’s perfect. As you said, the way the two stories weave together is beyond clever.
I'd always interpreted the Black Freighter as being a more broad parallel to the ethical degradation of the world during the story's events than about any specific character.
After all, what is the world if not the sum of its characters?
@@HMNCLunar Woah. That's beautiful.
"The mad angry beard masquerading as a man"
Accurate. Accurate.
This video convinced me to read the comic. Instead of just watching the movie.
That's great! Hope you like it!
There is a director's cut with the Black Freighter cut in in the proper order. It's my favorite version of the film
@@Thekarateadult It’s my favorite version too.
THE BLACK FREIGHTER is based on an old Folk song, sometimes called PIRATE JENNY. The British Folk-Rock band Steeleye Span does a great version, as does the legendary Nina Simone. Many other cool versions exist as well.
Actress/singer Lotte Lenya ("From Russia With Love") did a chilling version of the song in the original German version. ruclips.net/video/Ec0clERjQ5A/видео.htmlsi=j_b8FUckoe4dCDnh
Excellent analysis.
I think the only thing you didn't mention was how is another example of watchmen using a storytelling technique that really only works in comics, not in prose or film. Where are two narratives can be happening simultaneously and we are able to both acknowledge and see and recognize that they are simultaneous while being able to take the time to read them separately and process them fully.
To be honest, that's not something I thought of! Interesting idea and I've been scratching my head trying to think of an example from a book/TV/film and can't!
Thanks for watching!
That was somthing Frank Miller was doing at the same time as Watchman - he would have two or three narrators talking about the same scene at the same time - and by haveing their captions in different colors and fonts it wasn't confusing at all...
Excellent analysis, really.
As I see Watchmen as a story about the people, I simply thought that every story mattered, even that of the mariner comic. Though I saw the parallels on every scene, I never connected it with Veidt's arc. Great!
Thanks for this. I read Watchmen when it was first serialized. Back then, I read evert bit of the black freighter portions. Reading it then, I did have some vague sense that it was making commentary on the story as a whole, but I couldn't pinpoint precisely what though.
I have also heard of people who skipped over the text portions of the book too. I couldn't believe that anyone would do this, as the text portions did so much to the world building and added so much more understanding to the characters too,.
That's very cool, would have loved to have experienced it as it was coming out.
And yeah, skipping sections, that's something I'll never get either!
Thanks for watching!
Seriously read his novel Jerusalem, it's life changing
nice analysis - it's highly amusing to consider the intersection of the 'Alan Moore hates comic book fans!' people and the 'i didn't bother reading the bits of Watchmen that didn't involve superheroes going bang bang' people
Damn I forgot the "Old Man and the Sea" references - shame on me.
This was a fantastic analysis. I was never a huge fan of the Black Freighter stuff, though this has given me a new appreciation of it.
Thanks and glad to have given some more context for it.
Yep, Moore literally tells us it's about Veidt. Interestingly Alexander the Great is seen as a hero by Veidt, and by many in the West. However, he's is considered a demon across most of the Middle East, a bringer of death and destruction.
I'm looking forward to the upcoming animation, hopefully it will keep the original ending.
Great point about Alexander the Great and yeah I'm looking forward to it too. From the little I've read about the animation I think it's going to be pretty faithful to the original work.
It reminds the story of The Horla by Guy Maupussant
Haven't read it but it looks great. Will have a look. Thanks for the recommendation!
Ive read that story countless times but I don’t see the connection. Care to explain?
This is really good. I've only read it once but I barely picked up on half the details you've mentioned there. 🙂
Cheers! And thanks for stopping by!
No one, should skip any section of Watchmen. Crazy!
Agreed! Thanks for watching!
Great analysis. I've always seen the main thematic link between Black Freighter and the larger Watchmen story is the main character thinking they are the hero, but finding out they're the villain. I thought that could be applied to most of the rest of the characters, too, but especially to Veidt. You gave me a lot more to think about with it, though. Thanks!
Cheers and thanks for watching!
Anyone who says they skip over the pirate sections is just low-key admitting they only watch the movie
I can't see that you missed anything. Excellent video. It helped me contextualise the Black Freighter inserts despite reading Watchmen numerous times. Thanks!
That's great and thanks for watching!
The reason why the Black Freighter story is in "Watchmen" is because Moore wanted to deconstruct all comic books genders. You have superheroes, detectives, aliens, etc. but not pirates nor swashbucklers, so the comic within the comic is there to fill that gap.
"Genders"? And no, he didn't; neither Moore claimed such in his numerous interviews nor is TBF deconstructionist.
@@Tretas. with all the respect to you and your opinions, I must tell you that you don't know shit not only about Watchmen or comic books, but about life itself.
@@NuncaSeMeOcurreUnNik lol, lmao even. Okay, "comic book genders".
@@Tretas. ok, genres. I'm not a native English speaker, so I made a mistake because in my language there is not such distinction between genre and gender. So I take your correction and correct myself in the spelling of those words.
Now, as you are not a native brain user, take my correction on your opinion for the good of yourself and stop saying bullshit about Watchmen.
@@NuncaSeMeOcurreUnNik Womp womp you're still wrong.
I believe the title, "The Black Freighter," is a reference to the refrain of 'Pirate Jenny," from Kurt Weill's Threepenny Opera. You can hear his wife Lotte Lenya perform it here on RUclips.
great analysis.. subbed
Thank you!
The support band of the Pale Horse is Krystalnacht, which leads to the "Kristallnacht". Kristallnacht is often taken as the date of the total takeover by the National Socialists in 1938.
Raw shark
Nu-clear.
Not Nuke-you-lar.
Yeah I cringed hearing myself.
@@TheVault_Comics Sorry! It’s the one thing I can’t seem to keep my mouth shut about! Solid video though! And I didn’t realize half of those segueways!
Thank you for saying it.
I got the common convulsion which happens whenever I hear anyone use this, incomprehensible, mispronunciation.
I am grateful that I am not the only one/one of a vast minority, in this.
🤘
Could the Black Freighter be a reference to the black freighter mentioned in Three Penny Opera where it's described as bring carnage and revolution?
That was very good, and hit some things I hadn't noticed. But as to Veidt, I felt that in those couple of lines, he was saying that he actually literally used reading The Black Freighter as a sort of tool for penance, reading it to visualize the lives he was taking as though experiencing his sin would somehow expiate it. But in thinking that would be good enough, he avoids facing the actual message of The Black Freighter.
But what is the bucaneer’s sin? Why is he punished? For his blind madness toward a goal he ends up being unable to accomplish
I think you nailed it
Cheers mate!
Yep, you got it. Veidt, like the crewman, tries to be a hero and ends up causing death and destruction. That also applies to Rorschach and many other characters in the story.
It's Ozymandias tormenting himself. He is the guy who loses his mind and becomes what he hates. That is what he fears the most: that he ia horribly wrong and has committed a heinous crime because he thought he was doing the right thing. The pirate story is his nightmares, as he intimates to Doctor Manhattan right before he leaves.
While Watchmen is my favorite comic, and I can completely understand why the Black Freighter in included, I just have a kind of dispassionate opinion of it to be honest. It really isn't engaging for what it is and as a result feels more like a distraction from the parts of the comic I'm actually interested in.
Completely fair enough and understandable given the switch in style, but you know I think you're missing out!
There was a DVD release of an animated Tales of the Black Freighter, plus a few movie extras. If you can find it for rental or in a library, I found it pretty good.
I have to admit that I skip this part when I re-read the story.
I think the Swamp Thing issue by Moore that didn't get the stamp from the comics authority was one of the first. Didn't think about that with the Black Freighter subject matter.
Skip over? Fools
Very good
Thank you and cheers for watching!
Its padding
The Inclusion of the black freighter as animated segments in the movie was also quite brilliant, though harder to ponder upon as movie enforces it's pace as a comic or book takes on your pace.
Still, it is a great tale to include. It is quintessentially a fleshed out story about "the way to hell is paved with good intentions"
The version I saw didn't have those segments included. I thought they were dropped and became a stand alone dvd. I guess a re-release of Watchmen has put them back together.
This is frankly brilliant. After all these years pointing out to me something that had been hiding in plain sight, and explains so much. I’m in awe, and humbled. Thank you
Thanks very much for watching and I'm glad I could help you see it in a different way.
Watchmen is my favourite comic.
I remember reading it for the first time and thinking it was so cool how this very easily ignored subplot directly mirrors and foreshadows the events of the book.
The "animated" feature of this is a bit odd and I struggled to see how it would have fit into the movie as it was supposed to. It makes more sense in its original form, of course.
A good explanation of the meaning and symbolism of the Black Freighter story, but I would be lying if I said the first time reading through watchmen, and almost every subsequent reading, I've found the pirate story to slow down and mess with the pacing of the main story, which is miles more engaging in every aspect be it intellectually or emotionally.
I wonder if the pirate story was not part of the story as it was released, and added afterwards as an addendum, would it garner more or less love?
If you need someone to tell you what this means you are missing the art of what’s going on in watchmen. Read it all again and think about what each character and scene represents. There is another level here.
Great vid mate.
Cheers and thanks for watching!
Great analysis!
Cheers and thanks for watching!
Anyone else feel like this kind of parallel storytelling really detracts from the story? Every story that does this seems diminished to me. It's as if you're being asked not to reflect on the meaning of the story.
That the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Saved you 10 minutss
Can you write the next script please?
@@TheVault_Comics hmu I can help
@@TheVault_Comics need more *hmu* and *minutss* (two s because there a lot of minutes).
@@TheVault_ComicsI hadn't actually watched your video till you commented.
You did a good job, sorry if I seemed rude. I'm glad you touched on how it reflects oz's motives
@HubbardiumKing ah you're all good, no need to apologise! And thanks for watching!
There is no meaning, there is no point, none of this matters, as a matter of fact nothing means anything so we should go into a cave and eat yogurt. Have a..day.
?
Sorry, I have nothing to add to the discussion. I haven't read the Watchmen yet, my copy is still not opened on the shelf. I don't want to catch some spoilers. I will back here, promise
Good to see you mate and I'll be looking forward to seeing what you think!
They print that book every year man, just open it or go buy the paperback
@@therealtijuanaman i do not have time for comics now, until December. I'm on work, not home. I do not collect books to stand on the shelf infinitely, if you about that. I like to read them. Also there's a backlog from 80s i want to close first, before Watchmen.