But even the Master himself, who took around a quarter of a century (on and off) to compose the thing, had problems defining what the ending in flame and flood really meant.
The nation of the new world based on the individual as the master of himself and on government as the servant to protect his life and property had cast off the odious remnant of the old world that contradicted its founding principles.
When the cruise ship Costa Concordia struck a reef off the island of Giglio on January 13, international attention inevitably focused on the actions of the master.