While yes, gates did exist in real life, they also did not have locks. It was just a handle and the honor code that prevented third class passengers from roaming free.
That's definitely possible. I've read that other ships had used locks, but don't remember actually reading that Titanic did. In fact, that might actually make more sense. Since the ship went above and beyond everyone's expectations about the standard of the third class areas, treating them a bit more humanely and less like cattle would follow that logic.
In the movie it was changed to 30 degrees. While there certainly is a possibility it did go higher than the strength of the steel says it should (just because something is rated for a certain amount of force does not mean it will instantly fracture at one pound over), there is no way it reached as high as 30 degrees, as Cameron has stated he believes it did.
This is one of those Cameron things I was mentioning. The guy is in the top fraction of a percentile when it comes to Titanic knowledge. But I don't think there's ever been anything to support anything close to that angle - not eyewitness testimony, or any significant re-creation data. I think sometimes he just lets the fantastical aspects of the sinking pollute his factual data.
As for the issue of salvaging, im personally all for it in every way. While I am definatly against selling the artifacts to private collectors, I think it is important that we try and preserve as much as possible from the ship, both debris and pieces of the ship itself. The ship is decomposing either way, atleast with salvage part of it can be preserved for future generations. While yes, it can technicly be considered graverobbing; so is the vast majority of all archeology.
There are probably very few bodies that were ever there in the first place. 320 of the bodies were recovered by salvage vessals after the disaster, and the vast majority of others probably drifted for months until they decomposed away. Very few would have actually sunk right away and ended up where the ship is.
That's why I think of it as a symbolic grave site. Since so many bodies were never recovered, the ship is the logical focal point as a grave. Sure, most of them didn't go down with the ship. But some certainly did. I would be more inclined to have less of an opinion, if I hadn't read so many family members thinking of it that way.
And I am definitely torn on salvaging. Emotionally, I'd like it left to rest. If nature takes it away, so be it. But then there's the side that does think it's important that future generations be able to experience it in some way.
A few months back, I did the Titanic exhibit at the Luxor - it is
really well done. And being around all of the exhibits gave me a really weird feeling. It's hard to describe, just this mixture of awe and a truly uncomfortable emotion. It's probably the closest I could ever come to seeing a ghost.
That was classic!
