WEEK 9: The Martian by Andrew Weir (5)

     This book is definitely another example of a classic as its depth to which it shows human character is incredible. Not only is it a survival story for Watney, he also has to deal with the depths of loneliness and the restrictions of bureaucracy. Similarly, the other members of the crew learning that he has survived need to to be able to deal with the guilt and also fight over the moral decision to follow NASA’s orders or risk their own lives trying to rescue Watney. 

With this short blog entry however, I’d prefer to mainly focus on Watney’s side of the story. What should be made clear is that his knowledge of science was not enough to get him through the mission. In fact, he had to utilize ingenuity, determination and needed to be ready to take risks. Loneliness is another hard factor to battle, as being put in his shoes, you don’t necessarily expect people to know you’re alive. You expect any day to be your last and try to fight the solitude creeping it, however, you see that Watney can’t fight it, and is finding ways to cope. As evidence, the narration in itself is made through log entries. Those are typically meant for someone to read on the off chance that somebody will one day hear your tale. Log entries also require an amazing amount of dedication. They take awhile to write consistently and this shows that he also had a lot of free time up in space. While the job is highly stressful, he also had to find a way to pass time and distract himself from the fact is what all alone. Moreover, he even decides to go through his crewmates’ remains, as if trying to grow closer to them; that’s how he finds Lewis’ love for disco.

This book was a great experiment and simulation to enter the human psyche and understand better what your body goes through in crisis. It also makes you ponder on the moral intricacies of survival situations.