''Every Man for Himself'' is a 1996

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

Beryl Bainbridge Dame Beryl Margaret Bainbridge (21 November 1932 – 2 July 2010) was an English writer from Liverpool. She was primarily known for her works of psychological fiction, often macabre tales set among the English working class. Bainbridge won the ...

about the 1912 RMS ''Titanic'' disaster. The novel won the 1996

Whitbread Prize The Costa Book Awards were a set of annual literary awards recognising English-language books by writers based in UK and Ireland. Originally named the Whitbread Book Awards from 1971 to 2005 after its first sponsor, the Whitbread company, then ...

, and was a nominee of the

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a Literary award, literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United King ...

."Every Man for Himself" page
Fantastic Fiction. It also won the 1997 Commonwealth Writers' Prize (Europe and South Asia).

Plot synopsis

The novel is narrated by 22-year-old Morgan, a rich young American orphan who is a relation of banker

J. P. Morgan John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and investment banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age. As the head of the banking firm that ultimately became known ...

, having been brought up by his aunt and cousin. The book is divided into four sections, each one corresponding to a day Morgan spends on the ''RMS Titanic''. He provides a lively account of the middle-class to upper-class passengers found on the luxury liner, while finding time to fall in love with spoilt young socialite Wallis Ellery. Leading figures in the tragedy appear prominently including Captain Smith, naval architect

Thomas Andrews Thomas Andrews Jr. (7 February 1873 – 15 April 1912) was a British businessman and shipbuilder. He was managing director and head of the drafting department of the shipbuilding company Harland and Wolff in Belfast, Ireland. He was the nava ...

and

White Star Line The White Star Line was a British shipping company. Founded out of the remains of a defunct packet company, it gradually rose up to become one of the most prominent shipping lines in the world, providing passenger and cargo services between t ...

owner

J. Bruce Ismay Joseph Bruce Ismay (; 12 December 1862 – 17 October 1937) was an English businessman who served as chairman and managing director of the White Star Line. In 1912, he came to international attention as the highest-ranking White Star official t ...

. The narrator finally makes his way to a collapsible lifeboat after the sinking of the ''Titanic'', and is rescued by the crew of '' Carpathia''.

References

1996 British novels Novels by Beryl Bainbridge Novels about RMS Titanic Fiction set in 1912 Gerald Duckworth and Company books {{1990s-novel-stub