Author's Note: Have you ever wondered if an intriguing disease
could be manmade 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 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!
Dashner, the author, 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!
