Frauen und Kinder zuerst!

RMS Titanic survivors aboard a collapsible lifeboat

"Women and children first" is a saying that implies that the lives of women and children are to be saved first if the lives of a group of people are at stake. The saying is most famously associated with the sinking of RMS Titanic in 1912.

History

The practice arose from the chivalrous actions of soldiers during sinking of Anmerkung: HMS – manchmal auch mit Satzzeichen geschrieben als H.M.S. – ist ein Akronym bzw. Abkürzung für „His Majesty's Ship“ oder „Her Majesty's Ship“ (englisch „Seiner bzw. Ihrer Majestät Schiff“) und ist seit 1789 das offizielle Namenspräfix, welches alle Kriegsschiffe im Dienst der britischen Marine führen. in 1852, though the phrase was not coined until 1860. Although never part of international maritime law, the phrase was popularised by its usage on the Vorlage:RMS, where, as a consequence of this practice, 74% of the women on board were saved and 52% of the children, but only 20% of the men.

Unfortunately, some officers on the Titanic misinterpreted the order from Captain Smith, and tried to prevent men from boarding the lifeboats.Vorlage:Citation needed It was intended that women and children would board first, with any remaining free spaces for men. Because so few men were saved on the Titanic, the men who did survive were initially branded as cowards, including J. Bruce Ismay.

Criticism

Some analysts such as Dr Carey Roberts and Dr David Benatar have viewed the policy of "women and children first" (and conscription) as evidence of what Warren Farrell refers to as "male disposability," where preservation of a woman's life is given priority over preservation of a man's life. This policy, particularly as applied to incidents like the sinking of the Titanic, resulted in high numbers of widows or orphans who might then face economic and social difficulty.

See also

• Gendercide
• Misandry

External links

• Titanic - Women and Children first