(247 to 374 ) of Oryx and Crake written by Margaret Atwood - Book Report/Review Example

Lecturer Oryx and Crake Oryx and Crake illustrate a novel that was written by Margaret Atwood, a Canadian national. The novel illustrates speculative fiction, and also and a concept referred to as adventure romance. The novel is more than realism. The novel was published in 2003, by McClelland and Stewart. The novel made the shortlist for Orange Prize for Fiction in 2004 and Man Booker Prize in 2003. The television adaptation of the novel was made by Darren Aronofsky. It is part of the MaddAddam under HBO.

The assignment requires analysis contents of the Oryx and Crake, between the pages 247 and 374. The book illustrates Jimmy and Cracker discussing destruction of the present civilization. Crake explains that destruction of civilization will lead to the collapse of advanced technology. Mineral exploitation will not be done because of inadequate technology required for mining underground metals. The insufficient technology results in a world with no iron, bronze and steel mineral resources (Atwood 248).

The observations of Crake are very correct, because modern multinational use superior and expensive technology in the bulk exploitation, processing and usage of the minerals. The mineral are very important due to their economic importance. The minerals enhance construction and industrial activities (Ingersoll 165). The book also illustrates the main characters, Crake and Jimmy, playing computer games. The game depicts the destruction of the Earth and the resulting challenges like; lack of food supplies, poor transport means, poor healthcare and medicines, and inadequate power supply.

The game illustrates that Snowman, a post-apocalyptic character, lives near the crackers (Ingersoll 171). The crackers are primitive beings who resemble humans. Flashbacks in the novel indicate that Snowman was a boy who grew up in a modern world controlled by multinationals. This part illustrates fiction aspect of the novel. It is scientifically not possible to eliminate an entire generation from the Earth’s surface. But this scenario is easily shown in computer games (Atwood 251). The novel correctly depicts characteristics of a destructed environment.

In the movie, the fiction aspects illustrates that the entire world experienced destruction. The destruction in the novel is similar to real destruction activities caused by maybe; natural disasters like earthquakes, wars using mass destruction weapons like atomic bombs, fire emergencies and even highly infectious diseases like Ebola, bird flu or HIV/AIDS (Ingersoll 169). Snowman sees the ruins of RejoovenEsense compound; the perimeter wall has rusting iron spike with no electric current. The watchtower in the compound stands isolated and open, with no guards, destructed surveillance equipment, and the destructed outer gate (Atwood 253).

The novel clearly depicts romance or love aspects. This is realized when Jimmy becomes obsessed with the eyes of a child prostitute, when viewing child pornography videos. In fact, the title of the novel illustrates romance between the two characters, Crake and Oryx. Jimmy hires Oryx as a prostitute and teacher (258). This depicts real life situations where high rates of prostitution exists; for example in the slums of big towns or areas prone to natural calamities like drought and floods. Prostitution, especially for children, is a survival tactic in harsh environments.

Oryx recognizes the feelings of Jimmy and starts a relationship with him. The relationship is risky because of the expected negative reaction of Crake. The novel winds up in mystery. Snowman is infected with transgenic experiments. To get treatment, he returns to the camp, and surprisingly identifies three humans in a nearby camp. Snowman faces dilemma of whether to kill the humans, or to approach and befriend them.Works CitedAtwood, Margaret. Oryx and Crake. McClelland and Stewart. 2003. Print.

Ingersoll, Earl. "Survival in Margaret Atwoods Novel Oryx and Crake." Extrapolation: A Journal of Science Fiction and Fantasy 45.2: 162–175. 2004. Print.