Z for Zachariah

“ Z for Zachariah� is the title of the science fiction novel that I have been studying. It was written by Robert O’ Brien which was first published in 1973 and was written during the “Cold War”, wrote it. The plot of the novel is basically about isolation and the struggle to survive not directly a nuclear war but the after effects.
The main character in the novel is Ann Burden, from Burden Valley, in the United States of America. A nuclear war has left Ann all alone, as her complete family have been killed by the disaster: “When I look beyond I see that all the trees are dead, and there is never a sign of anything moving. I don’t go out there.� The valley however has been untouched by the devastation. Ann is entrapped, as everything beyond the circumference of Burden is unproductive of life. She leads a simple life-style. Cleverly using nature to survive. She shuts herself off from the past, and looks forward to the future: “I am hopeful to be an English teacher.� I believe that Ann is a very optimistic person who never gives up on hope.
Her farm upbringing has equipped her with a great deal of common sense, practicality and resourcefulness. Ann can shoot, cook and drive a trac

Gradually it becomes evident to Ann that Loomis killed a man named Edward, who stole the radiation suit as he insisted that his family is still alive and wants to go find them. This is all revealed in his haunted dreams, she realises that they are no nightmares and are actual flashbacks of something that really happened. From this point on Ann grows more and more suspicious of him, the man she knows as Mr.Loomis is recovering, despite her loving care for him, he shows an ever-changing attitude towards her, he becomes insensitive and arrogant, and he regards everything in the valley, including her, as his.

tractor, as well as fish and do agricultural work. This helping her to make life on her own a lot less of a struggle and showing us that she has good survival skills. This shows us that she is independent and well organised.

In conclusion, I believe that Robert O’Briens purpose in writing this novel was to show the reader the consequences of a nuclear war, and to let us know how horrifying it would be to survive. O’Brien implies that people can live in peace and harmony, by working and sharing, however, conflicts can occur when mistrust emerges. As we see this happening between Ann and Loomis, after a chain of events that helps her to make a final decision to steal the radioactive wagon and safe-suit to venture out to the unknown to find a better way of living. A relatively short novel, but long in meaning, leaving me to ponder many questions, one in particular I kept on asking