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Q6 - The Monsters

※WARNING※

This post contains some gruesome pictures. Do not view this post if you dislike pictures of mutilated monsters.

In this book, one of the main threats to mankind, that has lost its superiority over other living creatures, are the triffids.

Triffids are plants that can pull up their roots from the ground and walk. Also, these strange plants have stingers that can whip out and attack any kind of creature accurately. A triffid can walk quite fast, and its stings eject deadly poison. Not only are these creatures mobile and dangerous, they are intellectual. The idea of triffids being smart is started as an idea, but more and more proof of intelligence is shown in the triffids throughout the story.

So triffids are hideous creatures that bring danger to humans. We could also classify these plants as monsters.

Many times in fictional stories, we can see monsters. Sometimes, those monsters are terrifying for another reason: they were created by humans.

Sure, triffids were not exactly artificial existances brought to life by mad scientists, but through human greed they were produced and grown. For profit, sometimes humans create monsters, even when they do so without realizing it.

Another example of a monster that was created through the stupidity of a human was the monster in the Han river, a fictional creature in a movie that is quite famous in Korea.

This monster was actually groups of fish mutilated due to poison that was carelessly thrown away into the drains that led to the Han river. Had the scientist not done such a foolish thing, many lives would have been spared from this monster that fed on human flesh.

Another monster which everybody should know is Frankenstein: a poor inhuman creature created by a crazy scientist.

Composed of dead bodies, Frankenstein was not what we'd call a truly 'living' creature. However, my point isn't about whether Frankenstein was alive or not.

My point is that sometimes humans make monsters. Even when we scream and point at them, sometimes they are results of are mistakes.

If monsters are born by humans' fault, are humans monsters?

Q5 - Current Situations

In the book, Bill mentions the possibility of how the catastrophe of blindness was perhaps not coincidental. He theorizes that the blindness and the plague that killed many of the blind people was not accidental, but caused by artificial forces. To be said directly, Bill thinks that all these disasters were caused by biochemical weapons; satellite weapons that would destroy mankind.

When mentioning these kinds of mass destruction weapons, the first subject that most people are able to think of is nuclear weapons. Especially the nuclear bomb, the symbol of destruction that leaves a scar on the land and history forever. So, are there any situations in the modern world that relate to the novel? Yes. Starting from nuclear bombs that threaten to wipe out millions of lives, there are millions of similar situations out there like the ones in the story. The only difference is that the book has situations that are a bit more extreme.

Like Torrence, there were communist nations that forced their citizens to suffer for the equality of everybody. Even today North Korea is still learning its lesson under a Korean Torrence. Like the time when Coker kidnapped people with sight to make them help for the welfare of the blind, sometimes people try to help others, but in the wrong way. From Miss Durrant's case, there are people who try to live a life that they think is right, but refuse to change anything for fear of proving themselves wrong and losing their pride. Another common phenomenon in the world today is the thought that there will be somebody else who will do something. This is the way the girl who believed the Americans would have pulled off a miracle and stayed quite stable thought. Often people tend to think that 'it's okay since somebody else will do something about it' and refuse to solve any problems that come along the way.

There are a lot of things that have connections between the book and the real world, but why are there so many negative ones?

The answer is simple: everything starts from the fact that people are the cause of all of these. More specifically, how the human mind thinks is what brings in all the chaos. When the situations above are examined carefully, it can be observed that everything begins from how humans think: to be better than others, caring about morals only for the ones who are worse off without considering the other people and logic, their pride, the thought that I can be free of responsibility, and so on.

Most of these thoughts have a common spot. It is that nearly all humans tend to consider, or want to think, that he or she is more superior than others. Pride is another word for this state.

These kinds of situations happen because we think we are always better than other people. We want to seem like good people even when we know we're not, and we don't like to lose or admit that we are not as good as some people. People think that they don't have to do anything because the hard work belongs to others. It is such a selfish way to think, but it is a part of human philosophy that is too difficult to get rid of.

More in the case of nuclear bombs and triffids, (which are another symbol of man's greed because triffids wouldn't have kept on existing if men hadn't grown them for money) are more in the form of physical violence. Why would people choose violence as a strategy to be better than others? These days, even little children have fun torturing little creatures or playing violent games. What causes this? Why, of all things, is it physical abuse against others that humans endulge themselves in?

It is probably because violence really hurts. Physical pain can be felt, and it is a direct way to harm others. Through hurting other people, people can feel more superior than whoever they are tormenting. Feeling superior gives a feeling of being worthy. It is a filthy truth, but that's how some people think. It's true: mankind is more cruel than it seems.

Q4 - The Climax

I think that the climax of this story is when Bill takes his group of people that lived with him for six years and escapes their home to abandon Torrence.

Torrence had discovered Bill, Josella, their baby, Susan, Dennis, Mary, the Brent's baby, and Joyce in their home at Shirning. Now an officer in a clan that rolled by military rules, Torrence was about to force Bill and the others to be separated and to work (actually labor) for the survival of many other blind people. With harsh conditions to overcome and too many obstacles in the way, it was simply not possible to take care of so many helpless people in an environment that could hardly serve as a habitat any longer. Bill didn't like this Communist-style of politics, so he and his group make a get away during the night. The group head for the Isle of Wight, where Beadley's group are building a community without triffids.

The point where Bill fills up Torrence's vehicle tank with honey and makes his escape was a very important part of the story. It surely was the point of no return, where Bill and the other members would not be able to return to their home that sheltered them for six years, and now Torrence's lot was no more or less than mere enemies to Bill's lot. They had left everything behind and started forward for a new life in a new place where the return of humanity to the top of the food chain was being planned.

I was very pleased with this series of events. I disliked Torrence very much for his limited consideration for moral or ethical life. I personally think that he deserved to be it on the back of the head like that. I also was very satisfied and astounded by Bill's choice in this course of action. Sure, it was the right choice to not follow under Torrence's politics, but Bill's wit and cleverness in escaping the unpleasant situation by trapping Torrence and his men was unexpected. I found this scene quite a bit unhappy, too. When thought over carefully, the home that Bill had just abandoned was where he and Josella lived with Susan and the others for many years. It was also the birth place of the two babies in the group. It would be saddening to leave a home, no matter how many hardships you faced there, just because of some rude men who tried to ruin your life.

This climax was a good one, especially the fact that Bill made a choice based on what he thought was right. It was an event that showed the values of a person and the choice that we make due to those values.

Q3 - The Characters

Bill Masen is the main character of the whole story. He is an ordinary man who was simply lucky enough to injure his eyes and have them bandaged so that he couldn't see the meteorite shower, the very sight that blinds more than half the population in England, and perhaps even the whole world.

To me, Bill is a character that I have come to like very much. He is a very logical thinker, and he can make intelligent choices. He also knows how to appreciate others most of the time, and he knows how to resolve conflicts. I especially liked how Bill was not apathetic enough to ignore others in pain, thus being an ethical human, but also that he was not the type of person to make bad choices because he was swayed by his emotions. In the situation where strictly emotional and ethical decisions were the only one made, survival would hardly be possible (the case of Miss Durrant). Yet, Bill still retained humanity inside him, and was not too strict or violent for survival (the case of Mr. Torrence).

Josella Playton is another important character in this story. She is an infamous author of a particular book. Bill rescues her from being captive a blind man, and she becomes his partner for survival. They develop a precious relationship, and later on become husband and wife.

Josella is quite brave and she thinks a few steps ahead most of the time. Very honest to her feelings and open about herself, Josella is a confident girl who comes from a rich family. She is the very motivation for Bill to live productively in this ruined world full of hazards. If Bill was the logical thinker who theorized several ideas accordingly through facts, Josella was a more emotional character who analyzed situations hopefully but only through assumption. I do not mean that Josella was illogical or too emotional, but I am showing the contrast between her and Bill to show how the two of them balance each other out.

Susan, a little girl that Bill picks up during his journey in search of Josella, is a fast learner and cunning survivor. Due to her loss of family members, especially caused by the fatal stings of the triffids, Susan uses her vengeance against triffids to destroy them when she has the chance. Susan is practically the only character in the book, other than the baby of Dennis and Bary Brent, who symbolizes the new generation. She is part of the generation to follow the blind adults; the generation that have their sight and can learn from their parents how to avoid making mistakes the adults made. In short, Susan and her generation are a symbol of hope: the hope of recovering the land that is now inhabited by triffids.

Another thing about Susan is that she meets Bill, and they both save each other from the grasp of loneliness. Both of them comfort each other during their search for Josella. In a devastating situation where the feeling of loneliness can lead to giving up and despair, the existence of Susan and Bill were of great help to each other.

Other than these three characters above, there are a number of characters who represent several different perspectives of life. There was Miss Durrant, who based lifestyle on Christian views that were strict and not practical. Her pride and stereotyped prejudice against some people was very ineffective for survival. On the other hand, there was Torrence. He represented something similar to military rule or Communism. His way of politics resembled feudalism in a vague way. Very much based on force and power, Torrence's way of governing was quite inhumane. The ineffectiveness of this system of rule was centered mostly on people with high ranks, thus only increasing difficulties for people in low ranks. As a result of this disagreeable political system, Bill and his group of people escape their former home and abandon Torrence. Other characters include the Coker (the cynical side of life), Beadley (the logical side of life that doesn't consider exceptions), the people who gave into death without finding hope, and so on.

Q2 - The Settings

The Day of the Triffids is a story that happens in England. However, there is no sign of the England that we know. There are no crowds of people doing their shopping, no tourists taking pictures of magnificent buildings, and certainly no happiness or joy at all. England is transformed into a true dystopia that contains the most hideous sights: blind people scattered everywhere in the country as they scavenge for food, bodies that no longer have life in them in every district, a plague that leaves no survivors, and gruesome enemies called triffids.

This unfamiliar scene of decay and desolation is nowhere near anything that a person would associate with England. It was quite a disturbing setting, and I couldn't really find anything very beautiful about any settings in the book.

From the start of the story, we have distasteful sights covering the whole of London. Dead bodies and blind people fill the hospital that Bill was in. He goes to the streets only to discover even more victims of the whole catastrophe. London is turned into a great morgue in a short period of time.

Although the metamorphe of a familiar city to a world that is turned into a perfect dystopia was slightly disturbing, I did see that there were glimpses of the old England beauty left in some places. Even though the land is now a desolate, empty space that conceals evil that lurks in the shadows, the artificial and natural beauty of the region is still quite untouched. All the old beauty of England will slowly be buried under dust, time, and corruption.

There is a point in the story where Bill thinks about how he would never see the old England again. He also mentions how the city would be destroyed slowly through decay and collapse. It is a true statement, and it is a bitter one, too. Bill says that he is looking at the beginning of the end of London. It is true. That setting is what we see in the story.

These depressing settings relate largely to what the characters in the story feel strongly. This desolate nation that no longer has any feeling of community is a lonesome place. In the midst of a dying country full of threats and dangers, and with most people now alone, the need for society is strong. People can't live without each other.

Bill and Josella met each other, and therefore were able to not feel lonely. The existness of even one person that will be there for you can become enormous strength and hope. Bill searched for Josella because of that strong will to be with her: a person who he could love and be loved back by. Companionship is what is most desperately needed in this place that has been plunged into darkness and isolation.

Q1 - A Significant Passage

As I stepped outside, another door farther down the passage opened. I stopped, and stood still where I was. A young man came out, leading a fair-haired girl by the hand. As she stepped over the threshold he released his grasp.



"Wait just a minute, darling," he said.



He took three or four steps on the silencing carpet. His outstretched hands found the window which ended the passage. His fingers went straight to the catch and opened it. I had a glimpse of a low-railed, ornamental balcony outside.



"What are you doing, Jimmy?" she asked.



"Just making sure," he said, stepping quickly back to her and feeling for her hand again. "Come along, darling."



She hung back.



"Jimmy-- I don't like leaving here. At least we know where we are in our own apartment. How are we going to feed? How are we going to live?"



"In the apartment, darling, we shan't feed at all--and therefore not live long. Come along, sweetheart. Don't be afraid."



"But I am, Jimmy--I am."



She clung to him, and he put one arm round her.



"We'll be all right, darling. Come along."



"But Jimmy, that's the wrong way."



"You've got it twisted around, dear. It's the right way."



"Jimmy--I'm so frightened. Let's go back."



"It's too late, darling."



By the window he paused. With one hand he felt his position very carefully. Then he put both arms around her, holding her to him.



"Too wonderful to last, perhaps," he said softly. "I love you, my sweet. I love you so very, very much."



She tilted her lips up to be kissed.



As he lifted her he turned, and stepped out of the window.





This passage comes from page 68, and it is a scene that comes out the morning Bill and Josella decide to go out to find some clothes. Josella has already left, and Bill is coming out when he sees the young couple and their fate.


After this passage, there is a brief dialogue by Bill about how he must get used to the disastrous happenings that occur around him. The young man's suicide with his loved girl was a mentally critical hit to Bill. Until now, the deaths of people were not that much of a tragedy, mostly because Bill did not see anybody in the act of dying yet. However, this passage is about a man who chooses to die with his love, and does this in a swift, subtle act without informing her about her death that was to happen. The passionate love between the two people is shown vividly in their conversation, where signs of affection can be seen without spare.


It is incomprehensible to many people about how people can choose death, or the idea about dying with somebody you love. This passage represents both cases, and I really couldn't keep my mind off it.


Choosing death is an extremely difficult decision to make, and many people don't find the courage to do so. However, sometimes people choose to commit suicide. This act is done when the people feel utterly hopeless, and when they feel like nothing in the world could help them to feel better. Death is sometimes what people see as an eternal escape from pain.

Another rare event in the modern world is to die with someone who you love. Often people do not see why anybody would which to do such an act, but it happens. The philosophy behind joint suicides is simple: it is too heartbreaking for one person to leave behind the other in death. The very desire to die in the arms of someone who you truly love is a romantic, happy ending for those who think a life without their love is too cruel. Although it is hard to comprehend, it is a true opinion of some people.