pontalba

I started wondering/thinking about the Doomsday Clock, and wondered where it was in 1957 when Shute was writing this novel. Well, I found this picture of it's progression since inception in 1947. Source Wiki link is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doomsday_Clock As you can see, it was at pretty much it's lowest ebb. Reflecting Shute's concern and the tone of On the Beach. If you scroll down on the link, you'll see the image, and below that a timeline of what was happening at the time.

Oh, crikey! Electric power just flashed, once. May lose power. Thunderstorm.

Ohhh, good stuff, Diane!

I can see your point. The trouble is that when an author does explain all the inconsistencies, it gets irritating (to me, at least) and takes away from the flow of the narrative. Sort of a "need to know" thing. We don't need to know that particular item to understand the broader aspects of the novel.

Well, with the advance warning, they could have excavated more than usual, whilst able. As a practical matter. Also, as with any novel, there is a certain suspension of disbelief. I think Shute wanted to dwell on the more emotional aspects of the situation. Plus, of course, put out his own warning regarding our technological advances. Just as he didn't dwell on the worse aspects of human nature. He mentioned, briefly, the looting and drunkenness going on, but then went on to what he considered the finer aspects of human nature. Love, loyalty, duty.

I guess it depends on the source, I'd thought they must have a local one. Added in Edit: Since the event was so predictable, I'd have thought anyone would have secured whatever they needed to keep the power going. Thus the local source.

Pillars of the Earth is huge, but it's a fast and easy read. It flows well. Yikes. I'm sorry you are going through this. Narrowing down is a good thing, at least when you have the actual diagnosis, something can be done about it!

Thanks, Gaia.

Yessss?

Ok, I can't find the reference. Account, where???

Sounds good, at least he is keeping the tension up.

You mean the suicidal tendencies vs. prolongation of life?

Yes, but I thought that she wanted to experience love making with Dwight, as opposed to sex with whoever was before. I don't consider her to be a "loose woman" though. I think it was part of her experiencing the 5 stages of grief. Anger/rebellion, against "them", the "system". I wonder if she would have loved Dwight, and I believe she really did, if he had given into her sexually. Would he have fallen off of his pedestal in her eyes? Do you thing it would have disillusioned her with him? Again, there is Shute's deliberate ambiguity.

I've tried to remember if he has been in any other dramatic roles, and I seem to remember something about it, but can't find any evidence by googling. I don't remember any of the actors aside from Peck and Gardner.

We saw Noah, meh. Good acting but the book was better.

Also wanted to mention I've acquired a couple of new books. A Very Long Engagement by Sebastien Japrisot (for the May RC) Oh, and the film as well. Flags in the Dust by William Faulkner It is the follow up on The Unvanquished that is reviewed above. Intruder in the Dust by William Faulkner

Don't get me wrong, I really did find a lot to appreciate in The Kraken Wakes, and enjoyed reading it. However, The Day of The Triffids was to me the best of his books. Maybe it's because it was the first, and I was quite young when I read it. But it's held up through subsequent readings, so I don't think that's it.

Ruth, I'm picking up the DVD at the library today, but probably won't watch till husband finishes the book. I've seen the Gregory Peck version, years ago. I liked it, but don't remember a lot about it. One thing that threw me in reading it was that in the book, Moira was a thin blonde.....which Ava Gardner, ain't! lol And, it seems to me that in the film the submarine ended up in San Francisco Bay, didn't it? There is a newer version that I haven't seen. Armand Assante and Rachel Ward are in that one.

We saw the film Noah the other day. No doubt about it, the acting was excellent, but the storyline left much to be desired. The book was better. Even looking at it in a non-religious light, the liberties that were taken were a bit over the top. Bad guys were made into good guys, the settings and methods were completely changed. Characters that were not in place at the time were inserted. It was as though the producers combined the Bible story, and every myth, and story into one big extravaganza. It rather left me with a bad taste in my mouth.

CG, I think that Shute was being deliberately ambiguous with Dwight and Moira's exchanges you mention above. (and thanks for finding them!) Remember this was written in 1957. "Nice" girls didn't sleep around......at least didn't admit to it. Of course it happened, but society was a great deal more repressed then, and I think both Shute's writing style, and the character's actions reflect this. Regarding the times one character referred to another as "crazy"...lets face it, we've all called someone else "crazy". That doesn't mean we think they are Clinically Insane. There is a wide gap there that covers a multitude of behaviors. And as far as the doctor operating on that woman with the growth, I thought, at the time, that it was purely hope that ran him. Doctors are trained to save lives, take an oath to save the life, under any circumstances. And come to think of it, it seems to me that Hope is what was the underlying process going on with regard to all the character's denials. Hope is a uniquely human experience. We hope against all odds, against all evidence that we will live. Doesn't matter if a radiation cloud is bearing down on us, or a freight train is 10 feet from us.........we hope. We hope for life, it's just inbred. Janet, yes! there is no black and white there. Shute presents a range of behaviors, and allows the reader to, maybe not judge, but to think for themselves. Decide what they think on their own.

That's about my line of thinking as well. This makes me think of the Kubler-Ross 5 stages of grief. Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. The stages are not necessarily in any set order, and can re-occur, so it isn't so strange that being drunk would cause one to regress to another stage, and with defenses down, as when drinking.....it seems logical that anger would come out. Agreed, they were in different levels of denial, but in the case, I don't think that was a bad thing. Ahh, now. If I'm not mistaken........and I'd have to do a hunt for page numbers, don't Peter and Mary refer to Moira as a sort of "party girl"? I can't remember if they used that particular expression, but that's the way I took whatever phrase they used to mean that. That would have been the era's code for the girl has slept around. So, no virgin she. And, to me, Moira going after that pogo stick showed just how much she loved Dwight. She'd go to any length to please him, anything to make him feel.........more "normal", to feel better, to help feed the illusionary illusion. That's love. Unselfish. Oh, I remember all the old films of the 1950's and '60's that had radiation doing all sorts of things, making people into some sort of monsters, zombies, etc So, certainly that was the mind set then. I fully agree with you re the euthanasia business. Actually I thought it was bad enough being government sponsored, but as you say, not mandatory........that would have been awful, and much more than I could have taken.

When I tried to reply this morning, I must have hit a wonky key or something, my curser disappeared, and I had to power down...then we had to go out. Anyhow, was sayin'.....I'll pick up the DVD, but husband wants to finish the book first, so it will be a bit. Plus, I forgot to stop at the library on the way home. There are two versions, btw. I'm getting the original, Gregory Peck and Ava Gardner version.

Ruth, I liked Dwight and Moira too, but I think my real favorite was John Osborne....loved his race as well. What hutzpah!

I can see it either way, really. I've often thought whilst reading these books, the genre in general, that I'd rather not survive in that sort of world. And, really, how many of us could do it? We just are not tough enough and would be victimized by the stronger ones with guns.

Yes, re Triffids, and as difficult as it is to say, yes for Midwich Cuckoos.....because of the positive long run ending for the Human Race. Unfortunately those alien "children" were not going to allow humans to survive. Re dairy farmer to Peter....to my way of thinking, it's only realistic thinking. And, sweet that the farmer would go to the trouble for such a short time for his wife. That is love. Admiral to Peter....Again, realism, facing the facts, not feeling sorry for ones self, all were in the same situation. No one better than the next person. Peter musing to self....Frankly, I thought that a bit stupid. There were several times I thought Peter was being selfish...I don't think he wanted to spend too much time at home. I thought he used that career reasoning to hide behind. Perhaps because it was too hurtful, and just too awful to contemplate his wife and child's death. He was unable to face it full time, as his wife had to. And I thought it unfair of him (to her). But the fact that he hid his remission from his wife....well, that could really go either way in my mind. Either he wanted to do as she did, and for them to die together, but I think again he didn't want to survive with out them. It would have been doubly awful for him. Re Dwight in the church.....To my way of thinking, that was all in the service of coping with an untenable situation. He knew he couldn't go home, that there was no family to go back to. He was not deceived, he well knew they were dead. No hope. So what? To think constantly of his loved ones, and the death they suffered would have driven him crazy. Truly crazy. IMO Normal? Well, in my opinion, yes. Normal in an extremely abnormal situation. What else were they supposed to do? Run out in the street, crying, shouting and railing against Fate? Sit in a corner and waste away with a depression so deep they couldn't see over the edge? Stay drunk for the duration? Fat lot of good that would have done!