Blackhole Reaction

P. 222 of the pdf where Rob's friend, Dave, helps them unload their things from the car and take them to their tent.

The part of this caption where Dave reminds Chris that he used to sit next to her in 10th grade French was really poignant because it shows a picture of the happy, smiling Dave in 10th grade compared to the frowning, deformed Dave of the present. This was so meaningful to me because these images represent two different worlds separated by time but connected by the decisions that led to the dark place Dave lives in now. This is a great example of how poor decision making can ruin a life that would be completely normal and happy otherwise. Whether those decisions involve drugs, unsafe sex, criminal activity, etc. there is a sharp pang of regret that coincides with the thought of innocence lost. To think back to life as a child or a young adult when the world seemed so bright and everything was new and exciting and then to relate that to the responsibilities and routines that go along with aging is a sad thing to do. Innocence is something that only exists for a certain amount of time and then once it is gone, it is gone forever. To think of the individual decisions and actions that lead to the loss of innocence is nostalgic and heavy, but it is important to remember that lost innocence does not necessarily mean things will be bad in the future, it simply means that things will be different. Accepting this difference, like Dave must do with his deformity, is what is necessary to keep on living a somewhat ordinary life, despite the decisions of the past.

Black Hole

The part that I chose was where he discovers a body of a girl and says "There we holes, childhood scars...a map of some girl's life...a girl I'd never know." I feel like this is a very powerful line because it feels very true and sincere. Sometimes we're so desensitized to images of war on the media that we forget the fact that these people were once living, breathing people that walked in the same way we did. And now they're gone.

Black Hole

*pgs 24-25, when they first discover the tents in the forest and spot Richard Holstrum's yearbook photo. They trash his camp and justify it by saying he deserved to live out there.

Many elements of the story line closely parallel the real-life version of such an apocalyptic event-- the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 80's; at least in the way it was perceived at the time. It conveys a lot of the same themes present during that period, such as stigmatization of the afflicted, the resulting ostracization, social confusion.

It was interesting to see the different ways each person was affected-- those who were not so obviously physically deformed fared much better in society than those with grotesque facial defects. The sexually transmitted nature of the 'Bug', and the idea that it affects only a certain demographic really reinforces stereotyping and stigma surrounding it, and that in turn deters people from considering the situation from a human perspective, with empathy. They look at people they used to know-- classmates, friends, and see only the disease. This leads to a lack of understanding, and a lack of desire to understand. This is divisive and only serves to widen the gap between the 'normal' population and those who would most benefit from their support.