The Novel Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel presents the genre of post-apocalyptic as Alexis stated in her previous post. It contains all the characteristics of what a world would be like after the fall of civilization. There is an epidemic, known as the Georgia flu, that completely collapses the world as we know it. It spreads quickly and efficiently, leaving much of the population deceased. Technology is no longer present and there is no government or stability in the world.
As Robert suggested in his previous post, the story is written in different perspectives. He discusses how each perspective is intertwined with the one character, Arthur Leander. In the beginning, we see Arthur, a once big-time Hollywood actor, fall to his death on stage. This is the very beginning of the outbreak of the Georgia flu. In the next section of the text we see a different perspective from Kirsten, a little girl who was at the play that Arthur was performing in when he died. This takes place twenty years into the future after the outbreak. We meet another perspective, Arthur’s ex-wife, which flip flops between when they were together and after she has separated from him. I notice that in this text time jumps forward, backward, and what I believe to be the present.
I believe that the syllogistic progressive form can be found in this text. It is defined as “unfolding the steps of an argument, such that the conclusion follows as a matter of necessity once the premises are laid out for the reader.” As I have not finished the text yet, I am only making an educated guess on whether or not it will follow this exact form, but I believe that through reading what I have thus far the text will lead to an ending that will deliver the readers with answers. As readers, we want to know how this epidemic occurred, how are these characters connected, and what will happen? Will civilization be rebuilt and will they survive?
An example of this form in the text is the correlations between the different characters. Arthur seems to be the connecting point. In the text it introduces Kirsten in the beginning when it states,
“Kirsten”, the girl said. “I’m Kirsten Raymond.” (7).
This is in the beginning when Arthur collapsed on stage. She is a small girl playing a role in the play. Then in the second section we meet her again when it says,
“Enter Lear,” Kirsten said. Twenty years earlier, in a life she mostly couldn’t remember, she had had a small nonspeaking role in a short-lived Toronto production of King Lear” (35).
There is a man named, Jeevan, who tried to save Arthur’s life that night. He is later introduced as part of the paparazzi that takes pictures of Arthur and his ex-wife. There are hints throughout the text that leave the audience curious as to how these characters are connected and hopefully in the end gain the knowledge by a conclusion.
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