Genre
Science Fiction
Setting and Context
A word in which there was a signficant drought that has caused water to be very scarce.
Narrator and Point of View
The novel is told from a third person point of view.
Tone and Mood
The novel is alarming, violent, tense, prophetic, and anti-capitalist.
Protagonist and Antagonist
Ramson is the protagonist of the novel; the climate crisis is the antagonist of the novel.
Major Conflict
The major conflict of the novel revolves around Ransom's struggles to survive despite the climate crisis.
Climax
The climax of the story occurs when Ransom moves further inland once again.
Foreshadowing
Despite his initial insistence that he would never return to the retreating sea, Ransom eventually returns to the sea, something which is foreshadowed early on in the novel.
Understatement
Initially, just how limited survivors options are if they wanted to survive the climate change is understated in the novel.
Allusions
The novel contains many allusions to religion (particularly native religions and Catholicism), to the geography of the world, to the science of climate change and the rhythm and changing ecosystems of the Earth, other post-apocalyptic media, popular culture, and history.
Imagery
To illustrate and underscore how the world has changed, Ballard includes stark, post-apocalyptic imagery.
Paradox
Industry has caused humanity to prosper, but is its downfall when byproducts of industry caused the significant climate change.
Parallelism
Ransom's journey and the journey of other survivors of the catastrophic climate change are paralleled with each other.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
n/a
Personification
The ocean of the Earth is personified in the novel.
