Friday, February 3, 2012

Death Isn't Peaceful

Author's Note: Have you ever wondered if an intriguing disease could be man made and the deadliest? The author of The Death Cure makes the "Flare" seem so creepy and real because of the descriptive pictures he paints in your head.


What would you do if you had a deadly disease that took you to extremes to find the cure? The author of The Death Cure, James Dashner, does a unique job of describing a deadly disease called the Flare, a disease much like the swine flu. The symptoms of the Flare are similar to swine flu: fever, fatigue, and body aches, except with the the Flare, you start murdering people because this virus takes over your brain. Even though this is a fictional book, it seems life-like because the author describes this horrific life threatening disease in a way that sends chills down your spine.

“It was the smell that began to drive Thomas slightly mad. Not being alone for over three weeks. Not the white walls, ceiling and the floor. Not the lack of windows or the fact that they never turned off the lights. None of that. They’d taken watch; and fed him the exact same meal three times a day--- slab of ham, mashed potatoes, raw carrots, slice of bread, water---never spoke to him, never allowed anyone else in the room.” (1) Realism, that is the word that popped in my head when I read this quote in The Death Cure, it felt as if I were in the room with Thomas. Readers especially enjoyed when Dashner described the way Thomas was isolated and received the same food three times a day. When Dashner explains situations the characters are in, he has a unique way of portraying how they are feeling whether it be pain, rage, or happiness, and the obstacles they try and conquer. Regardless of where Thomas and his gang are, the author always makes it seem like you are actually in the book, especially when the “cranks” (the crazy people) go insane.

Well it’s a good thing “cranks” don’t exist in today’s world or we’d all be “past the gone” (full out insane, where you start to become a cannibal and a serial killer) and we’d all be doomed! When Thomas is isolated in WICKED, World In Catastrophe Killzone Experiment Department, he feels helpless. While reading this book, I try to relate to the character's feelings. I think about my own experiences or how I would feel if I were in that character’s shoes. I think to myself...what if I woke up one day in a box, like Thomas experienced in the first book, and had no recollection of my memories, except my first name. That is really something to think about!

In The Death Cure Dashner doesn’t just make you feel what emotions the characters are feeling, he also makes you feel as if you are really in the book experiencing what Thomas, Brenda, Minho, Newt, and some of the cranks go through . It seems as if Dashner actually researched deadly diseases and came up with a realistic disease, the “Flare”, which would be the deadliest disease of all. The author makes the “Flare” seem so life like it’s scary! In addition, when Dashner portrays the scene of the crank palace, he does such a fantastic job describing this “place” that he painted a vivid picture in my mind as if it were real. It was almost as if he had researched psychiatric hospitals and investigated what truly goes on there.

In The Death Cure, the author depicts many different examples throughout the book about how it relates to the real world with emotions. Dashner also makes the story interesting by including realism in many different areas of the book. These “tricks” the author uses, capture the reader’s attention and make you feel engrossed in the book. You feel like you just can’t put it down!

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