Aiden Bell’s book titled “Reapers are the Angels” is a fiction story exploring a world ravaged by the Zombie plagues. It revolves around a fifteen-year-old girl named Temple who survives in a world of solitude, segregation and death. Despite the challenges she encountered, she has managed to live as a lone being with no differential nostalgia for her past. To her, imaginations and fanciful thoughts such as playgrounds and picnics are just intangible thoughts like dreams. She believes in self and the powers held in her well-sharpened ghurka knife ready to shamble slugs and protect herself from strangers she encounters. Bearing in mind that Temple is haunted by her past experiences and pursued by a killer, this study will explore the themes of “Good vs. Evil” and the “Will to Survive”
... as used by Aiden Bell in the book.
The theme of will to survive despite the struggles and challenges present in Temples life is well evident in the story. For example, after a long search Temple succeeds in finding a group of a survivor who willing absorbs her and takes her to the community. The struggle to find refuge in a society infested by Zombie is a clear reflection of the willingness to survive that Temple has in her life. Though worried by the new environment, a man from the survivors tries a move to take advantage of her innocent self. Following this, she takes up her sharp knife and kills him immediately. This connection between getting asylum in the society and killing the man presents the theme of Good vs. Evil. First, the group of survivors had made a great gesture by absorbing the
lone girl into their community. The action to take advantage of Temple and her decision to kill the man and flee represents the evil side of the encounter. In this case, the Aiden Bell tries to show how goodness in the society infested with negative motives and attitudes acts as incubation for evil and unethical events.
Her move to flee the community is challenged by Moses Todd who is a brother to the deceased man. Moses Todd has a mission to revenge against his own brother who was killed by Temple. Basically, from this encounter, Aiden Bell tries to show the balance between good and evil in the society. At first, the society was willing to hold Temple based on the dangers the community is experiencing against slugs. But, her action to murder the main creates tension and hatred with the rest of the community. For her to survive, she had no other option rather than to flee from the community. Therefore, regardless of the safe house opportunities that fate is placing on Temple’s life, she must fight against all negative odds that are readily available in her life.
On her new journey of escaping from Moses Todd’s wrath, Temple meets a mute and mentally challenged man who is chased by a dangerous group of slugs. Her conflicts with past mistakes still haunt her and lead her into taking responsibility for finding Maury a new safe house away from the slugs. Her move to safe Maury conflicts with her personal demons which make her life even harder. The isolation, conflicts with her inner demons and the pursuit by Moses proves her willingness to survive despite the dangers
surrounding her life.
Despite the fact that the novel does not indicate how the Zombies came to reality in the novel. Temple’s grief, struggle to survive, her past reflections, loneliness, and thoughts present her willingness to have a stable and hustle free life with loving friends and family around her. For example, the Moses Todd, his brother is presented as cruel individuals in Temple’s life cycle that are fighting to take up her life. The author also showcases the beauty of life through the mentally challenged man that Temple meant in her escape route from the survivor groups camp. The thought to protect and safe the man from the slugs reflects the good part of being human. But, her interaction with the man and there slugs awakens her personal demons which represent the evil side of the human survival.
According part one of the novel, Temple says, “God is a slick god.” This is due to the miracles that are present on the earth and which humanity are enjoying. Regardless of the miracles, she is fighting to live each day at a time in such a dangerous post-apocalyptic world. The undead people are seen to roam endlessly and the remnants of the humankind who are lucky to survive slugs seem to maintain a little humanity. In essence, this description portrays her actual struggle and willingness to survive in a rude world occupied by tough people and unfair world. Every individual in her immediate life seems to be fighting for a certain type of civilization and those who are luck to create a new world are up and ready to exploit the new and innocent entrants such as
Maury and Temple. Her believe in ethical, and morality makes her think that taking Maury back to her family members in Texas would work in easing the poor relationship and the hardships she has had with her enemies. But what she does not understand is that the vengeful man is only determined to revenge and kill her in order to bring sense to the mad world that they have been living in. Therefore, Aiden Bell achieves her move in presenting the human journey to survival by presenting odds and masses that challenge their achievement towards a better and stable life.
Conclusion
At the end of the struggle, Temple eases herself on the ground and vividly wonders on the actual minute she would die due to the pain and struggles she has experienced in her life encounters. According to Moses Todd, Temple must die in order to pay the debts she owed the perfect world and which she has cheated for a good period of time. Therefore, by presenting a Zombie story to explore the journey of survival in human life, Aiden Bell creates a stronger foundation to differentiate the good from the evil in every human experience and actions. For example, Temple, a young girl, was struggling to do good in the world only to receive negative feedbacks and counterattack from the people and the world itself. For instance, her move to return Maury back to his homeland and family beings in a fight between the world demons and the Temple’s inner demons which make it difficult for her to survive in such a rude world. Following this story, the author affirms to the audience that death
is nothing to fear for every human being because each and every person will eventually end their life journey by dying.
Work Cited
- Bell, Alden. The Reapers Are the Angels. London: Tor, 2011. Print.
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