Discussion Board Four: Blog Deep Dive into Station Eleven

 “You must be immune,” Jeevan said. “Yes.” Ben stared fixedly into the flames. “I’m the luckiest man alive, aren't I”(192)?

I found this quote very sad because I couldn’t even imagine what this man went through. He had to watch everyday as his loved ones died and all he could do was sit there and watch, waiting for himself to eventually to die but then he never did. I wonder when he finally realized he was immune and wasn’t going to die? It made me think about what I would do in that situation. If I watched my loved ones die one by one, I don’t think I would be able to live another day knowing they wouldn’t be there for me or anyone for that fact. I would literally be alone and I’m sure Ben thought about this too. But I find Ben to be the strongest person in the book because he had the strength to fight through and keep walking like Jeevan did.

“Keep walking. Keep walking. Keep walking”(Mandel 194)

I use this quote in one of the next questions but I really found this quote super important because it was what kept Jeevan going. I can just imagine him saying just “keep walking” as he walks for miles and miles on end each day, walking to places he doesn’t even know. I think instead of keep walking he really means keep surviving because I believe he wants to keep surviving so he can live to the day the world goes back to the way it was.

2. VIEW THE UPDATED UTOPIA PROJECT DOCUMENT FOUND ON THE COURSE CONTENT FOR WEEK FIFTEEN AND THE WELCOME PAGE. Based on this and last week's brainstorm, what do you think you'll write about? What do you think might cause the dystopia to happen in your world? 

I’m not completely sure as to what will cause the dystopia in my world but I have a few ideas. There could either be  huge wildfires that simultaneously erupt in different areas of the world forcing people out of their homes and the fend for themselves and trying to survive. Or I could also have a dystopia where there is something in the air outside that is making people go crazy and you can’t breathe it in or less you’ll go crazy too, causing the world to go into panic and leaving only a few smart people still alive. Or I could also do something where the government separates the world into four sectors and each one is forced to work for a part of the government but something goes wrong and war breaks out. These are a few ideas that I am still brainstorming on but I hope to make a decision soon.

3. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. In section five Jeevan's story returns. (Yes, to Jeevan!) We see him in the high tower apartment with his brother as the world descends into chaos. Later on the road, what does he realize in order to keep going after his brother Frank's death?

In chapter 36 Jeevan finally left the apartment with his brother left lying in bed lifeless. He began his journey of survival and on the way he realized how much the world has changed. He finally knew what it looked like for the city to be completely dark and found out how quiet the world could be. He was left alone, with only the memories of his past giving him comfort and was left longing for the ones he loved. But in the last page of chapter 36 he knew what he needed to do. “Keep walking. Keep walking. Keep walking”(Mandel 194). In order to keep going he realized he just needed to keep walking and never look back, that’s the only way he would keep on living.

Is memory solely a source of strength and comfort in the novel? Or is there another side? What do you think Mandel is saying about the role of memory not just in the novel but in our own lives?

I believe it is also a source of not only comfort but pain. As Kirsten struggles to remember much from her childhood, she is able to have clearer memories from the little ones she has which brings her comfort and strength by keeping them alive and strong but they also bring her much pain because she is always reminded of the memories she’s lost of her parents, and not knowing what happened to her on the road, making her suffer through the empty memories which she wishes were images in her brain she could look back to. I think Mandel used memories as some sort of way to explain that the past holds so many memories of what civilization used to look like, like in the book, compared to what it is now and how it’s important to remember those things because although it may bring pain, there is also comfort and strength like stated earlier.

2. Section Six is all about airplanes (chapters 38-41) in a variety of different ways. What roles do airplanes play in these chapters?

Airplanes play many roles in this chapter. The first role it plays is early on when August talks about the scar on Tyler’s face and that it is in the shape of an airplane and that airplane is a symbol of the cult that Tyler grew up in. Tyler grew up in an airport making the airplanes a powerful symbol in his cult because as they grew up in the airport they thought about how crazy it was that something as big as a plane could fly in the air as easily as a bird could. It opens them up to the memory of what kind of achievements and innovations were made with the work of world civilization before the pandemic and leaving them left with hope and faith, making the airplane a religious symbol for them. The next role they play is surrounding miracles of surviving. When Clark ended up in Severn city, somehow miraculously their flight didn’t contract the virus, how lucky is that? While the rest of the world 99% of the population is becoming extinct due to this virus, somehow this flight managed to evade the virus leaving them the luckiest people and still alive. The Airplane may only be one of the great advancements people thought wouldn't be possible but this one gave them hope that they could hold onto for the future. Just like the rest of civilization.