Alas Babylon Character Analysis

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Recommended: Babylon revisited point of view

In Alas, Babylon, the main protagonist, Randy Bragg, lived an easy-going life. “With his share, plus dividends from a trust fund established by his father, and his occasional fees as an attorney, Randy lived comfortably” (Frank 12). His life isn’t very believable though since it was simply luck that he not only got money from his father’s trust fund, but inherited a sizeable amount of land that produced thousands of dollars’ worth of citrus. Plus, it’s not common for people to have to rarely work like Randy does. However, his way of life is completely changed after The Day, and he is forced to go to extreme lengths to keep himself and those close to him alive and well. With Randy housing many family members and friends after The Day, many trials began to ensue. Randy’s fast-thinking preparation before The Day proved to be a life-saver when it came to getting money from the bank and stocking up on food. However, his trading skills failed when he was in desperate need of salt, which led to everyone …show more content…

After The Day, everyone recognizes the need to prepare in order to survive, and therefore stock up on food, gas, and even weapons. The whole town of Fort Repose eventually realizes the hardships of survival, especially after the highwaymen become a threat. This leads to another theme which is leadership. Randy and many others get together and agree they must protect everyone in the town. They realize since the government is struggling, and nobody is coming to their aid anytime soon, they must step up to defend and provide for their town. Another evident theme that is seen in all the characters is self-discovery. Randy goes from a carefree, easy life alone to a developed leader, Ben Franklin proves he’s becoming a confident, trustworthy young man, and Dan Gunn, who lost his motivation to help the sick in other countries, finds his mission to take care of the people of Fort

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