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Writing stradegy analysis of The Hot Zone
Richard Preston’s abhorrent and edifying The Hot Zone strikes uneasily with readers by investigating the wrath of a prolific virus over many years while examining the true amount of power man possesses in a world ruled by nature. A series of dramatic variations in setting, excruciatingly grotesque delineations, and an ambiguous but enthralling coherence of horror lend the novel an extensive and symbolic portrayal of the author’s meaning.
Preston chooses not to follow precise chronology in the novel but opts to sporadically vary settings between certain chapters sometimes traversing oceans and decades creating a tone of unpredictability. The book begins with a gripping account of a 1979 episode in Africa involving one man’s illness and death covering the first thirty pages. Without explanation the author jumps four years and an ocean to Thurmont, Maryland, 1983, introducing an entirely different setting with completely unrelated characters. The reader encounters this trend again and again jumping from Maryland to nuns in Africa, to offices in Atlanta, and again to Africa. Frequent unpredictable changes in setting and story keep the reader enthralled while embodying the erratic and undetectable attributes of infection the virus encompasses. With each new change in setting the author generates a new incident of infection each time isolating the random way in which the virus has surfaced and spread. Preston’s symbolic and enthralling utilization of volatility lends readers an understanding of the virus and an explanation of author’s holistic theme that despite humanity’s hubris, nature’s flawless design renders man powerless.
Preston manipulates the overall structure, consisting of sporadic but related supporting details as well as the constant, thrilling nature of the virus to establish coherence. The author utilizes each new venue the novel habituates to portray proof of his illusive theme. Incidents unrelated to one another share pieces of information that build upon one another creating a common thread. Jumping back and forth from one setting to the next creates a comprehensive understanding of the virus. This understanding is invaluable in the unity created as well as in deciphering the author’s purpose. Preston pieces stories and information together as if each were a supporting detail building upon the next to hold up an unspecified main idea. With each new detail the reader grows closer to comprehending the author’s concept. Preston never copiously addresses his purpose but inconspicuously alludes to the supreme holistic values he holds in the power of nature.
Nature has no justice, no vendetta, and no motive. Nature is devoid of human emotion and morality and encompasses only the power to kill and the will to do so. Preston does not wish to capture the dispassionate wrath of nature in his words but rather in the symbolism of their arrangement. The concise journalistic style Preston incorporates into The Hot Zone renders language defeated in contest with the story of the horrifying, fatal power of nature and man’s ultimate submissiveness. Preston exemplifies the fact that even man’s language is [next page]