54 pages • 1 hour read
Rick YanceyThe 5th Wave
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2013A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
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The Futility of Action
The futility of action is discussed at several intervals throughout The 5th Wave. Cassie says to herself, “Run=die. Stay=die” (58), as she lies under a car and waits for the sniper who shot her in the leg to finish what he started. She knows she has no choice in the matter, as the sniper—the Silencer—will be stronger and quicker than her now that she is wounded. She remains under the car for a long time, working through her options, eventually deciding to walk away and allow what is to happen to happen. Cassie couldn’t have known that the Silencer was in fact impressed with her courage and decided not to kill her.
Cassie thinks “Run=die. Stay=die” (113) again after seeing her father murdered and Camp Ashpit destroyed by an alien bomb. She recognizes that her father understood the soldiers were not there to help them and ensured she was armed because he wanted her to escape. His own hands were tied; he couldn’t run but staying would get him killed too. The massacre at Camp Ashpit illustrates the sheer scale of the Others’ power over the remaining human survivors.
Zombie (Ben Parish) finds himself in a position where “Run=die. Stay=die” (283) becomes an issue for him as well. His squad is in a constant state of futility—and this becomes apparent when a sniper pins them during a mission. Zombie must find a way to neutralize the enemy and escape. He does this by blinding the sniper firing at them, unaware that the man is Reznik, their superior, and that he is not shooting to harm them, but to force them into action. This mission further illustrates the Others’ power to not only destroy but deceive the remaining human survivors into killing each other.
For each character, the idea that action is futile seemingly leaves them with no choice. But in Cassie’s case, she decides to face her would-be killer because she cannot remain hiding forever. After all, she has a sibling to save. Cassie’s father had to choose between prioritizing his own or his daughter’s survival—but as expected of a father’s love, he chose the latter. Zombie chooses to take action against the mysterious sniper for the sake of his squad’s survival. He finds a way to neutralize the threat long enough to get most of them to safety. Overall, the human characters’ strong bonds propel them to take risks even in the face of death and seemingly impossible odds.
Hope and Manipulation
The Arrival does not immediately rob humankind of hope. Most people view the aliens—the Others—as friendly or something easily defeated as Hollywood has depicted for decades. When the first wave hits (the loss of electricity), there is more confusion than anything. When the second wave hits (natural disasters), people are confused and frightened, but they still hold out hope that the waves are somehow coincidences or mistakes. When the third wave hits (disease) and millions of people die, the remaining human survivors cling to the idea that the government and military are still in control. They wait for rescue, this hope keeping humankind alive and together via camps for the time being.
The Others are clearly aware of the potency of hope and wield it against humans. First, they send soldiers in an effort to “rescue” human survivors. This hope of rescue encourages parents and guardians to release custody of their children (the future of humankind) to the Others—without realizing they themselves will be murdered as soon as the children are gone, and that some of the children will also die. The Others also use hope by telling survivors that the people of Wright-Patterson defeated the Others to reclaim their base and are training their soldiers to kill those infected by the aliens. These lies prey on the human desire to protect one’s loved ones and influence the survivors to kill each other (via the Others’ deceptive eyepieces).
During Cassie and Ben’s rescue of Sammy, Vosch directly tells that “There really is no hope, you know. All your daydreams and childish fantasies about defeating us—useless” (418). However, shortly after this, the base is completely destroyed and Cassie, Ben, and Sammy escape to fight another day. This victory proves that hope is very much alive and will live on in the group and Ben’s squad—as long as they continue to work together.
Loss is Universal
Cassie is changed by the loss of her family. She is alone and believes for a while that she might be the only human left on Earth. She is jaded by the soldiers who took her brother and killed her father; she is angry at the birds who carried the Ebola-like virus (the third wave) that killed her mother. Cassie is filled with anger and grief, these emotions keeping her to herself as she travels through the empty streets of Ohio. But she is aware that she is not the only one to suffer. The camp her family goes to after her mother’s death is populated with 50-60 people who have also suffered loss. Crisco, the 13-year-old who has a crush on Cassie, was orphaned by the previous three waves.
Ben has also lost his family, but his was taken in such a way that leaves him feeling directly responsible. Men broke into their house, shot his father, and wrenched his sister Sissy out of his arms. Ben ran without looking back, and assumes his sister and mother are dead. He feels like a coward for running. He promised his father he would care for his sister seconds before his death, and he failed. For this reason, Ben becomes Zombie and takes Nugget (Sammy) under his protection, assuming the younger’s family is dead too. It is Ben’s guilt over his sister’s death that causes him to return to Wright-Patterson to save Sammy; he even saves Cassie the two times she falls, sparing Sammy from suffering the same guilt as him.
Sammy is not immune to the universal nature of loss. He meets a young girl on the school bus named Megan, who becomes upset when she learns Sammy’s father and sister are still alive: “My whole family’s gone, and your father and sister? It isn’t right!” (192). Her anger is not because she begrudges Sammy his family, but because she is grieving her own. Grief is a strong emotion that is handled differently by different people. Grief for a child can be confusing and frustrating, explaining Megan’s reaction. In the end, it is universal grief that both motivates the remaining human survivors and allows them to be manipulated by the Others.
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By Rick Yancey
