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On the Beach
After the war is over, a radioactive cloud begins to sweep southwards on the winds, gradually poisoning everything in its path. An American submarine captain is among the survivors left sheltering in Australia, preparing with the locals for the inevitable. Despite his memories of his wife, he becomes close to a young woman struggling to accept the harsh realities of their situation. Then a faint Morse code signal is picked up, transmitting from the United States and the submarine must set sail through the bleak ocean to search for signs of life. "On the Beach" is Nevil Shute's most powerful novel. Both gripping and intensely moving, its impact is unforgettable.
Paperback
Published May 13, 2008
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November 1, 2012
There are no gunfights in "On The Beach." There aren't any car chases (though there are a few wrecks). The last bombs dropped about a year before the plot starts.
Still, I think that the idea that nothing is happening in this novel is quite wrong. So much is happening between the lines. The characters are calmly going about their business while the end marches towards them, and, despite the appearances, they really aren't happy about it.
This book reminds me of psychological concept of "learned helplessness." If you put a lab mouse in a cage and electrify the floor randomly with no reason at all the lab will scurry for a little while and will eventually stop fighting and give up and let the situation take its course. The book starts after the stages of grief have taken place. All the characters can do to cope is to act like everything is normal.
There is a reason this book is taught. While it suffers of the bad characterization of women as all books from the 1950s do (the women act rather hysterical), it's a great novel about the inevitability of death. We all know we are going to die, the only difference in "On The Beach" is that the characters know approximately when this will happen.
Still, I think that the idea that nothing is happening in this novel is quite wrong. So much is happening between the lines. The characters are calmly going about their business while the end marches towards them, and, despite the appearances, they really aren't happy about it.
This book reminds me of psychological concept of "learned helplessness." If you put a lab mouse in a cage and electrify the floor randomly with no reason at all the lab will scurry for a little while and will eventually stop fighting and give up and let the situation take its course. The book starts after the stages of grief have taken place. All the characters can do to cope is to act like everything is normal.
There is a reason this book is taught. While it suffers of the bad characterization of women as all books from the 1950s do (the women act rather hysterical), it's a great novel about the inevitability of death. We all know we are going to die, the only difference in "On The Beach" is that the characters know approximately when this will happen.
Displaying 1 of 1 review