Final answer:
The subject of the question involves literary analysis, focusing on the metaphor of a ship's journey to symbolize struggles and achievements. This metaphor is used to depict the state of a nation or the life of an individual as observed in various literary texts.
Step-by-step explanation:
The quotations provided are from various literary works and they all utilize the metaphor of a ship’s journey to represent challenges, achievements, and significant transitions. This journey often symbolizes a nation’s or individual’s voyage through difficulty or conflict towards a destination which may represent safety, conquest, or final rest.
In literature, the ship is a powerful symbol of the state (as in the government or nation) or an individual's life, navigating the tumultuous seas which represent trials and tribulations.
For example, Creon's line from Sophocles' “Oedipus Rex” speaks of the gods righting the “storm-tossed ship of state,” which is a metaphor for the nation experiencing and then recovering from turmoil or crisis. Similarly, Walt Whitman's poem O Captain! My Captain!, representing the United States after the Civil War and the mournful acknowledgment of President Lincoln's assassination, uses the ship metaphor to express a mix of triumph and sorrow.
In these metaphors, the ship is anchor'd safe and sound after overcoming difficulties, the voyage is closed and done, and the victor ship comes in with object won, which marks the end of struggle and the achievement of goals, despite potential losses along the way.