edited Reading response

ELA    CTQ Number 5

Reading Response -Edited

 In life threatening situations, people show their true selves. The book 'No Safety in Numbers' by Daynba Lorentz is an exciting book, which takes place in a mall in the suburbs. On a busy Saturday a biological bomb in found in one of the mall's air ducts. The mall is locked down. Soon food and supplies begin to run out, and the people turn against one another. Although these people tend to form small, tightly knit groups, the groups themselves are in constant competition with everybody else in the mall.

     Early on in the book, when there is still food and the bomb isn’t such a huge problem, the people begin to form groups. For example, Ryan and his football team join up almost instantly. Mike says, " Stick with us!" and reassures Ryan that he will watch his back. This shows that even early on in the book, people begin to look out for one another and protect each other. These little groups are very tightly knit, and difficult to enter.

     However, these groups are ONLY looking out for themselves. When Ryan is beaten up by some boys (over some food), his group comes after the people who beat him up. Ryan's friend Mike says, "you mess with my family, you mess with me." Although this sounds endearing, this little vengeance fight results in one boy with a broken nose, and a few others unable to walk. This shows how the groups, although they watch out for each other, are in constant competition with everyone else in the mall.

The groups are also very distanced from other people. They are very unwilling to help others. When the flu breaks out in the mall, for example, Ryan saw a family being forcefully detained because they had some symptoms of the flu. When the little boy “began to sob uncontrollably,” Ryan wants to help. But Mike (the group ‘leader’) insists that they only watch out for themselves. Even though these people were in obvious need of help, Ryan’s group didn’t want to risk any confrontation. This seems incredibly selfish to me.

     In these types of situations, people show that deep down, they only care about themselves. All they want is their own survival. Although they may have formed small groups, they were in NO way united. In some cases, the groups fought against one another even if they needed to be working together. This book does not envision teamwork; rather, it shows how difficult it is for people to be selfless when their lives are in danger.