72 pages • 2 hours read
Michael GrantGone
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2008A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Overcoming Fear in the Face of Adversity
Fear is a primary theme and motivator of every character. From the start, fear is ingrained in the plot when kids panic about teachers and school staff vanishing before their eyes. Hysteria sets in, and the emotional and mental stress sharpens when they realize all adults are missing. Left on their own, Sam and his friends must learn how to survive while mourning the loss of their parents/caregivers, older siblings, and other adults. Struggling to establish a peaceful, working society, the characters wrestle with intense fears that tend to control their actions (or inactions).
Sam is too afraid to use his powers, a state of mind that lasts for at least half the novel. His fear and guilt drive him to repress his power. Sam is so scared of his power harming others as it did with Tom or giving into the thrill of his strength that he doesn’t unlock his potential as a protective leader until Caine threatens his life and the lives of those he loves. Before that, Sam runs away from conflict, which frightens him, but his deeper fear is that he doesn’t want to disappoint anyone by not being the brave, powerful, wise leader they expect.
As his relationship with Astrid grows, Sam is also afraid of his romantic feelings. They give into their desires and kiss, but the intimacy at first scares them since getting closer means they could get hurt. While Sam grows to love Astrid, his concern for her life causes him to ignore Jack when Jack tries to warn him about the temptation monster. Sam is consumed by his fear of losing Astrid.
Multiple characters commit actions they don’t want to because of fear, including Jack, Diana, Orc, Howard, Quinn, Astrid, and Sam. Characters like Jack, Orc, and Howard enact orders to harm others under duress, but they don’t wish to do harm. Orc and Howard admit to Sam that they don’t want to tie him to the gym equipment and leave him for dead, but they prioritize their own lives. Caine will harm or kill them if they don’t complete his demands. Besides Sam’s closest allies and the concrete-hand hostages at Coates, no one defies Caine because they’re too afraid of Caine’s great power and Drake’s sadistic punishments. Howard and Jack directly state that they don’t want to be on Caine’s or Drake’s bad side, and Jack has internal thoughts about Drake hurting him if he doesn’t do exactly as Caine asks. Characters both act and refuse to act out of fear countless times.
In the ensuing battle against Caine, overcoming fears is essential to victory. Sam emerges as a leader when he becomes fearless. He welcomes all to fight with him, recognizing that everyone has something to give. Sam’s speech inspires everyone on his side to conquer their fears and fight for their cause. Conquering their personal fears of injury, pain, and inadequacy allows them to achieve victory over Caine, at least for the time being.
Survival, Leadership, and Responsibility
These three themes are linked, but survival is the starting essential component. The kids are thrust into a strange world and must first perform the necessary actions to survive, such as caretaking, managing food, maintaining hygiene, providing shelter, and ensuring safety. The youth are forced to become more mature, independent, and resilient without their parents.
Lana explores the theme of survival in-depth, as she is injured immediately. After the car accident, Lana and Patrick fight for their lives. Going in and out of consciousness with severe injuries, Lana knows she needs to heal her injuries and find food and water, or she will die soon. Patrick’s courage against the mountain lion helps Lana survive, and her ability allows her to heal herself. The instinctual drive to survive pushes Lana to develop her power and walk miles until she finds sanctuary and sustenance.
Once basic needs are covered, the children need compassionate leaders who will take charge of societal areas. Responsibility for themselves and others is connected to leadership, and like Sam and Mary must accept the responsibilities that come with their roles in the new society and work to perform their duties with the best effort. Without leaders to establish control in each area, such as the daycare, the babies wouldn’t be fed, clothed, or changed. As Mary yells at Howard, the littles rely on others and will die if people don’t attend to them. Mary is key to the little ones’ survival, and though she feels overwhelmed, she handles the responsibility as their leader, advocate, and caregiver.
Likewise, Albert becomes a reliable leader for food supply. He feels a responsibility to work and realizes they all need to band together to create an effective society. Albert knows kids need to act, not just rely on a system that will be broken if they don’t learn to grow food, cook, clean, and provide for themselves.
Though he employs strict measures, Caine attempts to create a highly functional, prosperous society when he takes control. Many of Caine’s rules make sense, such as helping Mary and searching houses. His system falls apart, though, because he’s a tyrannical leader. Caine rules harshly, allowing Drake to use force whenever he desires. The responsibilities to keep everyone safe, happy, and healthy cannot be undertaken by Caine. The younger kids, in particular, need guidance and direction, not to be instilled with fear. In the end, Sam finally steps into his leadership role and establishes peaceful, inclusive ways for everyone to live safely.
The Misuse of Power
When the kids first create a system of order, Orc rises to power. Linked with the theme of fear, Orc and his group are aggressive and intimidating. No one wants to cross them, as they have weapons like crowbars and baseball bats. Orc helps Mary, but he expects rewards and worship for every favor. Orc’s power is based on his physical strength and intimidation, which he misuses to gain and keep power in the novel’s first part.
When Caine arrives, the novel adds a dual element to this theme: the misuse of authority stemming from the misuse of a superpower. When Caine takes control, he instills fear and expects everyone to respect and listen to him because he has a lethal superpower and is not afraid to use it. With just one example of his superpower, when the crucifix crushes Cookie, Caine showcases his strength, making him the unelected leader because others fear him. Once established as the leader, he misuses his new authority, becoming a dictator and creating rules without votes or consideration. Caine also doesn’t have any value for his citizens’ lives, as he doesn’t care when Bette is beaten to death by one of his men. Caine doesn’t hold a trial or seek justice for Bette’s murder. He also commands Drake to kill Astrid, Pete, and Sam. His corruption and violent measures show an obvious misuse of power in the literal and figurative sense.
Beyond his governance, Caine misuses his power with even those he purports to care for. Though he protects Diana, he treats her as though he owns her. Caine expects Diana to give into his sexual advances, as shown when he kisses her. Because he believes he loves her, Caine expects Diana to love him back, or she will risk his fury and retaliation when she rejects him. Though Caine tries to control everyone, he cannot force Diana to reciprocate his feelings. Using his influence to take advantage of someone is an obvious abuse of power.
Caines’s obsession and misuse of his power drive the main conflict in the novel, leading to a war between his side and Sam’s. Caine and Drake have no regrets after harming others, with multiple examples of their cruelty—from hurting Astrid to imprisoning their own disobedient Coates kids to ultimately creating war. The downward spiral of brutality is a component of the theme of abusing power.
Sam wields his powers—his leadership and his superpower differently. As a leader, he is conscientious about not misusing his power. However, regarding his superpower, a case can be made that Sam misuses his power by not using it when he knows he has access to it. He suppresses it due to guilt and fear when he could have been training to control the light and utilizing it to fight against people like Orc and Caine. Sam could have saved them from hardships, like the boat race or Astrid being kidnapped and tortured, if he was accepted and controlled his power sooner.
