Hood, Ark Royal, and symbols of British decline

Was Hood's loss a symbol of British decline because she was the face of British naval power?

Hood represented an older face of naval power; Ark Royal's loss was more significant for its newer form. Neither makes national decline inevitable.

Hood's destruction does not establish that British decline was inevitable. Although she had been a face of British power, she represented an older form of it. Ark Royal embodied its newer form. Her sinking is judged the greater loss in that comparison.