Originally posted by Ditte3
I'm with you in this..Jack said:'She's only aship,mate',so he's not that obsessed by his ship.It doesn't mean freedom to him anymore.
2.Will wasn't her first love.Yes she was charmed by pirates story and certainly head about Jack Sparrow,and was daydreaming about him as young girls do.Yes she might have thought little Will or young William goodlooking,and thinking of him as a pirate.In the first quarter of COTBP when they are adults and meet in the governor's house,they don't seem to be in very close relationship.Sure they might have had a 'distant' kind of 'love' for each other.This is how young loves used to be.When you idealize the other person.when she met the real Jack it must have been an experience for a whole life.Imagine someone saving you from drowning.On the other hand she had to realize during the movie that he's not an idea,he's a real person with faults.I think that in the end of COTBP she wanted Will to be a pirate she canlove,who's noble hearte etc,but I think she thought of Jack alot.She just didn't think it would work between them.In DMC we see her with Jack and when he's around her she fogets about everythin or almost,she's attracted to him.Does a faithful bride behave like that?Sorry for my rambling.These things have been discussed many times.
Wow... that was deep. The ship no longer brings Jack freedom. So, we know from that scene in film 1 that Jack's swann song is freedom... that's what he's after, that's what he craves, that's what drives his actions.
The Pearl, in film 1, represents freedom to him. But by film 2, it begins to represent the consequences of his actions when he basically sold his soul for the ship (sold his soul for freedom...) so it becomes tainted and associated not with being able to escape consequences but with having to pay up. That's not freedom: that's responsibility. So Jack's line, "she's only a ship, mate," isn't so much laying aside his love of freedom (which is also represented by the sea) but of rejecting it's new representation. The Pearl doesn't ever make the transition back to freedom in film 3, i think. Think about what happens on the ship. Jack dies a horrible death, he's stuck in the Locker going crazy on a Pearl he can't get into the water, he's competing with Barbossa for it, and eventually, he loses his chance at immortality on it... not to mention the girl he fancies.
this is getting really long, sorry. what i mean to say here is, the Pearl loses something over the course of the films, and Jack seems quite content to go after the Fountain of Youth in a paddle-boat with a sheet. THe old Jack would have bartered the fountain of youth map to get the Pearl back. or something to that effect. but he doesn't need it now. you almost get the sense he is happy to be all alone, no crew, no Gibbs, just Jack and the sea.
So how does Elizabeth tie into all this? I think, early on, Elizabeth represents the forbidden fruit for Jack (as he does for her, obviously) because she is part of a world he has given up in order to be who he is. Jack had to make certain sacrifices to live the life he wanted, part of which was ever being accepted or allowed into society (even after saving Elizabeth, he's nearly hanged). His instincts still fit with society in a lot of ways though... he saves Elizabeth, there's a lot of times he doesn't kill people when he maybe ought to, even as a pirate, he treats Elizabeth with honor, etc... So, it's not surprising he would find Elizabeth extremely attractive. Something tells me Jack Sparrow never really found satisfaction in the type of women he would get being a pirate in Tortuga. (Also exhibited by his wild affairs with women like Tia.)
Elizabeth represents a different kind of freedom to him: the freedom to be the good man he is without constantly fearing reprisals. Jack's been living in tension since he became a pirate-- wanting to be fierce and badass, but having really noble instincts. He has to squash those instincts... leaving more tension that would put him a constant state of stress. So Elizabeth represents the freedom to allow those instincts to come out, but also not have to grid himself into a rigid society either. She encompasses both worlds. She's a spitfire, but she's essentially trying to do the right thing. She's beautiful, but she's also very capable. She's highly connected to the Port Royal elite, but she's mixed up in a pirate curse. You see where I'm going.
But all that changes with the Kiss and Betrayal at the end of DMC. After walking the line with Jack for 2 films, she finally makes the jump over to the Pirate side: in this case, what that essentially means is, Jack can NO LONGER trust her with his good side. She no longer represents that freedom of being able to let his good nature come out... because he did, and she killed him for it. He calls her pirate... and she no longer represents freedom to him. (Of course, I still think he really admired her as a pirate for what she did, as he says in peas in a pod, he admires a person who is willing to do whatever is necessary... yes, he ABSOLUTELY admires a person like that, but he doesn't want to be around them. Suddenly, SHE embodies the sort of pirate HE will never be able to be... but has been trying to be for 13 years. She has joined the ranks of Barbossa... pirates who are strong enough to betray people to their deaths in order to get what they want. Jack has always wanted to be able to do that but his good instincts got in the way. So he admires Elizabeth, probably wants to be more like her, wishes he could have been strong enough to row away from the Pearl and leave them to their deaths, but he couldn't and he didn't, and she is now beyond him in terms of what she is willing to do as a pirate.)
So I think his romantic attraction for her ends there. Not his physical attraction, or maybe his emotional attraction, but ultimately, she doesn't represent freedom anymore. She is dangerous, she is like Barbossa. You can see in film 3, his behavior towards her is similar to his behavior towards Barbossa: avoiding, with a hint of banter... but mostly you get the feeling Jack is trying to figure out how to deal with them while maintaining his distance.
Would Jack ever nominate a woman he was in love with and planned to woo to be pirate King? Doubtful. The role of Pirate King is like the role of any leader: you are going to have to make major sacrifices of your own beliefs in order to get things done, and probably risk the lives of everyone around you. That's a lot of responsibility and a lot of stress. I don't think Jack ever wanted to be pirate king, and I think making Lizzie pirate king, he was essentially using her because he KNEW what she would do as king, and it would accomplish his own goals at that point. And, as he said at the end of film 2, she is a true pirate, she is capable of making those hard decisions that Jack wouldn't make.
By the end of film 3, Jack has fully embraced the journey he starts at the end of film 2... allowing his good instincts to come out more and more, not in a proud way but in a sort of accepting way. He gives up immortality for Will, maintains the presence of mind to rescue Elizabeth off the ship, and then dutifully protects her honor while sending her off to Will's bed. Why? Because I think he still sees a lot of himself in Elizabeth, and probably sees that she is on a journey that mirrors his. She will eventually re-embrace her good nature as well, and no longer be able to play fast and loose with people's lives to get what she wants. But only if she chooses life with Will. His stoic morality will probably draw her back from her pirate-ness. (let's all be honest, there!) And if that doesn't do it, having a kid and being a mom will.
So Jack is essentially protecting himself. He can't trust Pirate Lizzie, but married-with-child Lizzie he could probably manage without having to constantly watch his back. He's taking down one of his most feared enemies. He's playing things closer to the vest: the point is to win the game, not to enjoy it, for Jack at this point.
Now of course, I don't think Jack's feelings for Elizabeth immediately changed after she killed him. Obviously, our emotions play games with us and aren't really that manageable. Jack is still intensely attracted to her. He fantasizes about her, and is drawn to her. He admires her pirate nature because he wishes he could be like that, in most ways. But, here's the clincher: I think watching what has happened to Elizabeth and her life SINCE her decision to cross over to the pirate side is the thing that FINALLY convinces Jack Sparrow to embrace his better side and not constantly try to fight it. In that respect, there is a deep bond there, but Jack and Elizabeth's relationship takes on the aspect of a meeting of minds at a desert oasis: a few flickering moments of passion, intensity, and connection, but they both continue on separate journeys to separate destinations. Their meeting changes both of them, but they don't leave the oasis together. Which is why most Sparrabethers are able to write cheesy Willabeth fiction about Jack and Elizabeth being competitive, flirtatious friends with ease.
Elizabeth ultimately does what Jack did: She sells her soul for what she wanted. She writes off her future like a blank check to Will and the lifestyle that would inevitably come with him. Just like Jack did for the Pearl years ago.
So, the Pearl eventually lost it's value for Jack. Does Will stand to lose his value to Elizabeth? Probably not, though everyone has their mid or quarter-life crisis. But Will will have to come to represent changing ideals for Elizabeth throughout their life, or it will fall apart. Because like Jack, Elizabeth stands to lose her ideals and change what she wants in life.