Aft Torpedo Rooms

The sailors’ also dealt with the dangers of dying while at sea. Due to the high danger, a number of the shipwreck cartoons also took on a darker humor as a way for sailors to relieve stress and form a shared bond.

Such dark humor reveals the sailors acknowledgement of the probability of death that surrounded their profession. The dark humor associated with shipwrecked cartoons also showed in other type of cartoons drawn by sailors.

Thus dealing with violence and death was a common way for those in the service to relate to each other and expressed their shared fears and experiences. The use of heroics and adversity to unite the crews into one common mindset and bond highlights perhaps the most human side of the submariners’ lives

This cartoon depicts two sailors coming across a mine and thinking it is an island they can stay on. One of the sailors realizes it is a mine too late and it is left to the reader’s imagination what will become of the two sailors.

The cartoon features an angel complaining to naval officers about a missile test, the joke implying the test resulted in fatalities and thereby creating the angel.

Interview with Victor Nardo on fear one experienced during service.