The Eleventh Plague Literary Analysis

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The Eleventh Plague is a science fiction novel in which Stephen, the protagonist, and his father have to survive the aftermath of a plague. Stephen is 15 years old and is very independent meaning that he does not like relying on others for help. Stephen is still young and has experienced losing many people in his family. But he kept moving on past this and created a happy life in Settlers Landing. The novel takes place in America where much of civilization is now gone. To describe this setting, the author uses lots of imagery. The theme is very depressing because civilization is gone now and a lot of characters pass away in the novel. Stephen lived his whole life in this depressing setting but managed to stay pretty positive. This goes to show …show more content…

Stephen must figure out how to keep himself and his medically ill father safe and he is not sure he can handle the big responsibility. Stephen is left to figure out what decisions to make to keep himself and his father alive. I believe for Stephen it was essential to move on from the fact that his grandpa just passed away and to acknowledge the fact that he was alone now. Stephen said to himself, “There was no one left. There was only me.” (Hirsch 39). This quote shows Stephen realizing that he was now alone. Stephen was still grieving due to the fact that he just lost his grandpa and now he felt like he was going to lose his father too. This is an example of strength because moving on from loved ones is hard. I think that the author is trying to teach its readers exactly this. Stephen moved away from the only thing that was slowing him down and that was his passed away loved ones. Stephen said to himself, “No one is coming. If I do nothing we die.” (Hirsch 41). This quote shows Stephen realizing that to move on, it meant moving on from passed away loved ones in his life. I believe that the author uses the central message to convey that moving on from passed away loved ones is essential to creating a happier

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