Survival is insufficient (Book Review Sample)

Name Professor Course Date Survival is Insufficient The human race has survived and thrived in the face of extreme adversity because learning how to deal with good and bad times makes life worthwhile. Station Eleven, a work of post-apocalyptic science fiction, revolves around a pandemic that wipes out the vast majority of the world's population in a matter of days. The narrative, presented in a non-chronological order, frames the events during the pandemic's course. The novel's main themes are survival, death, art, faith, and civilization. After the pandemic, people had no idea where to begin rebuilding their lives. This paper investigates the concept of survival inadequacy as depicted in Station Eleven. To keep living, one must devote time and energy to an endeavor that excites and motivates them, even if it means risking death. The Traveling Symphony comes to life in Station Eleven in a world devastated by the Georgian flu pandemic. The Symphony is bound together by their passion for performance and unspoken hyperactivity that keeps them on the move. Personal friendships and relationships exist beneath the large community of the Symphony. Even though people were starving, the Traveling Symphony not only worked together to stay alive but also continued to do what they loved, which is art in its purest form. They also adhered to their motto, engraved on their caravans, demonstrating their dedication to the words (Mandel,57). Survival can be by chance, but you won't notice your surroundings or abilities when you're just trying to survive. The work of the traveling Symphony is vital because it reminds us that even in the face of danger, we can still live to the fullest. Unlike any other character, they persisted for the sake of the future world and its advancement. They are still doing all of humanity's best work before the pandemic. When tragedy strikes, the Symphony motivates people to keep going and persevere. Humans were supposed to have a reprieve from the gloom of their enslavement in society. "All we want is to go home, to see the sun, to walk on the ground," Kirsten says (Mandel, 261). She wishes to convey the idea that, aside from continuing to live, surviving for as long as they desire is the same as dying. Kirsten considers having hope and being motivated to work for survival preferable to being depressed and hopeless. Those who pursue their goals and devise new ways to achieve them in the face of adversity have never given up hope for a better future. In a harsh and dangerous post-pandemic world, the characters must fight to survive and maintain their sanity. Despite the flu's random survival, Kirsten had to kill for her survival, but doing so has marked and changed her figuratively and literally. Kirsten's etched knife tattoos on her body represent both the stakes and the cost of survival (Mandel, 102). Nonetheless, the book reinforces the point by illustrating how life and death are inextricably linked, much like the two sides of a coin. People must do more than survive to be truly human; they must thrive. Survival necessitates the provision of physical necessities such as food, water, and shelter. The entities and emotions that make living worthwhile and dying justifiable remind humanity why they should live to the fullest. The beauty of art and its ability to bring humanity together, the inexpressible love humans cultivate for one another, and the pursuit of knowledge, morals, values, and ideals are examples of such entities and emotions. Kirsten wants to be more in life. Her childhood dream was to become an actress, as she confided in Jeevan on the night of Arthur's death. “It’s the thing I love most in the world too,” Kirsten said (Mandel, 15). We see Kirsten pursuing her dream years later when she joins the traveling Symphony to act. Kirsten's affection for her fellow Symphony members and the Travelling Symphony's mission fuels her desire to exist and truly live. Despite their grudges and disagreements, they always stuck together all year (Mandel, 47). Kirsten's recognition of someone or something bigger than herself inspires her to live rather than survive. Mandel believes that loving people is worth living and dying for, like Kirsten's Traveling Symphony, who are present in both good and bad times. When Miranda, Arthur's ex-wife, embarks on a journey to discover the modern world and its way of life, she exemplifies the theme of living rather than just surviving. She is always looking for ways to break free from the norm, but she has to deal with it. Her comic book expresses her feelings about the present and future worlds. Miranda believes there is still reason to live in this world. When she talks about the humans willing to take their chances under the alien rule in her Dr. Eleven graphic novel, she emphasizes the need to live rather than survive (Mandel, 76). Captain Lonagan requests that Dr. Eleven understand the people because "all they want is to see sunlight again" (Mandel, 77). These people refused to live on the bare necessities and were willing to put their lives in dang...