Chapter 7 |
In chapter 7, all of the power plants around Fort Repose start to fail after Orlando was struck by a nuclear bomb. This leads to the immediate halt of all amenities of everyday life. With no electricity, their refrigerator, freezer, and water stop working. Randy has to think quick and decides to use the artesian well from his citrus grove to have water for his home. He has his neighbors, the Henrys, help him set up the well. As their food begins to spoil, Randy goes into town to get salt, and finds it a mess. There are looters waiting on almost every corner, store windows are busted out, and even the grocery store owner is now arming himself. Randy found what he needed and went to check on Dan, the doctor, who he found beat up in his office, after drug addicts had robbed him and shot innocent people in the process. Dan moved into Randy's house shortly after that, and they extended the well system to two other neighbors nearby, Florence Wechek and Admiral Hazzard. The hotel that Dan was staying in burns to the ground, three days after Dan moves out to River Road. They also find out that Omaha had been practically wiped out with nuclear bombs, eliminating any chance of Mark Bragg's survival.
Analysis: This chapter starts to show the climax of the book, but the resolution at the same time. Pandemonium is starting to happen, with people doing desperate things for desperate measures. Society starts to fall apart, since all aspects of everyday life have changed, and that is very hard for most people to deal with. It becomes an act of survival, which brings out the worst in many people. At the same time, it is showing the resolution, because all is well on River Road, compared to the rest of Fort Repose. Randy has seemed to take charge, organizing a small community amongst themselves, with everyone helping each other to survive. This seems very effective, because survival in groups appears to be much easier than survival alone. This is foreshadowing the rest of the book, because things are improving for the small community on River rd, while things are getting much worse in Fort Repose. The community of River rd is a symbol for survival in groups, because they all contribute to each other, instead of one person bearing the full burden of survival.
Chapter 8
Randy's River Road community has survived for four months now, pretty easily in the broad spectrum of things. Things are starting to run low though, especially amenities like tobacco and coffee. Dan and Randy set up a trade and bartering system, since dollars were worthless, usually trading doctor's visits for gasoline. They even figured out a way to use the car's charging system to charge their batteries, in order to have electricity for the short wave radio. Even this late after the explosion, there are still cases of radiation poisoning. Dan narrowed it down to radioactive jewelry that all of the victims had been wearing, and made them dispose of it.
Analysis: Chapter 8 is the beginning of the falling action of the book. Then pandemonium has begun to stop, with people setting up a trade system for their goods and services. The main problem that Randy and his community have are that some of their luxuries are running low. They don't have much trouble with looters or radiation, and they are starting to rebuild society slowly but surely. I think the coffee is great symbolism for things that are taken for granted, because many people don't realize how nice of a feature it is, until it is gone. The irony of bartering system shows how fast things can change, because the dollar system was evolved over many years, but it was worth nothing and a new system was adopted and used within four months.
Analysis: Chapter 8 is the beginning of the falling action of the book. Then pandemonium has begun to stop, with people setting up a trade system for their goods and services. The main problem that Randy and his community have are that some of their luxuries are running low. They don't have much trouble with looters or radiation, and they are starting to rebuild society slowly but surely. I think the coffee is great symbolism for things that are taken for granted, because many people don't realize how nice of a feature it is, until it is gone. The irony of bartering system shows how fast things can change, because the dollar system was evolved over many years, but it was worth nothing and a new system was adopted and used within four months.