For this book report, I read The Maze Runner. This book was written by James Dashner and published on October 6, 2009. The genre of this story is Post-Apocalyptic Fiction, and takes place in a mysterious setting. This book report includes four main literary elements. The setting, characters, theme, and symbolism in the story gives it a very interesting tone. There are many different themes in this book including testing the characters memory, confusion, struggles, and fear. The main theme of this story however, is escaping a maze and fighting against the strange creatures that live there.
Setting: The story begins when a boy named Thomas wakes up in a place called Glade. The Glade is described as a large valley or meadow, enclosed by huge walls. Behind these walls are horrific creatures called Grievers. Nobody dares to enter the maze except the Runners, who volunteer to try and map out the maze. To be a Runner, you had to be strong, fast, and able to fight against the Grievers. They were the only ones ever allowed inside. When reading the book, you discover that the Glade is actually a pleasant place. It never rains or snows, and the temperature is always appealing. The setting is a very important part of the story.
It’s strange surroundings give the story a twist. In the beginning, the Glade is where everything takes place, but later in the story, the characters adventure into the maze. The maze is a huge, vast area that is made up of pathways surrounded by thick ivy covered walls on each side. The maze is constantly filled with Grievers, who are robotic-like creatures that act as a threat to the Runners in the maze. Characterizations: There are several main and supporting characters in this book, however the story revolves around a 16 year old boy named Thomas. The story begins when Thomas wakes up in a metal chamber leading into the Glade.
He doesn’t remember anything but his name, and is welcomed by many boys who seem to be around his age. At some point in their lives, all of these boys have experienced the same thing as Thomas. They all remember their name, but have developed a new, strange vocabulary to help them communicate. Thomas quickly becomes friends with Chuck, the boy who had arrived one month earlier than him. After given the choices of jobs he can take part in including a Slopper, Bricknick, Bagger, Track-hoe, or a Slicer, Thomas begins to gain interest in becoming a Runner, even though his friends say he can’t.
Thomas is very adventurous, curious, and determined. Even when he is told that he can’t become a Runner, he wants to go into the maze. When Thomas first arrives at the Glade, he asks many questions about where he was, why he was there, and questions about the maze. Thomas got to his feet and started walking toward the eastern opening. “Well, no one said I couldn’t look around. ” He needed to learn something or he was going to lose his mind. (4. 15) After seeing the Griever, he wonders why the creatures are there and what it’s like behind the walls of the Glade. Thomas swallowed, wondering how he could ever go out there. His desire to become a Runner had taken a major blow. But he had to do it. Somehow he knew he had to do it. It was such an odd thing to feel, especially after what he’d just seen… Thomas knew he was a smart kid- he somehow felt it in his bones. But nothing about this place made any sense.
Except for one thing. He was supposed to be a Runner. Why did he feel that so strongly? And even now, after seeing what lived in the maze? ” (Page 39) After reading this, you find out that even when Thomas is faced with a Griever, he is till determined to go into the maze. If it wasn’t for Thomas’ curiosity and determination to go into the maze, the story would’ve been a whole lot different. The main antagonist of the book, Gally, is Thomas’ main rival. He never trusted Thomas and later became his enemy. Thomas quickly gathered his thoughts, grasping for the right words inside the swirling cloud of frustration, confusion and anger in his mind. “I don’t know why Gally hates me. I don’t care. He seems psychotic to me. As for who I really am, you all know just as much as I do. ” (26. 18) In the book, Gally does everything he can to end Thomas’ journey.
He hates Thomas completely. Theme: There are many different themes in this book. Two of the main themes are friendship and determination. When Thomas first arrives to the Glade, he is welcomed by many other young boys his age. Some of the boys were friendly, others were not, but Thomas quickly learned to make some friends. His best friend was a boy named Chuck. Chuck arrived a month earlier than Thomas and still knew little about the Glade. Thomas also had a strange bond with a girl named Teresa. She was the only girl to ever arrive in the Glade.
This girl strangely arrived the same day as Thomas…. nd this never happens. Teresa and Thomas seem to share strange memories even though they have mostly forgotten about each other. Determination is another factor of the story. The Gladers, people that lived in the Glade, never gave up on trying to solve the maze. Each day the Runners would go into the maze and draw what they see. At night they would go back to headquarters and put together the pieces that they had drawn, trying to solve the maze. The Gladers never gave up on attempting to solve the maze Both of the themes in this story also play a significant role in my life.
For instance, there’s friendship. Friendship is something that everyone should have. You might have a lot of friends, or just a few. Either way a friend is someone that you can trust and depend on. When I’m in trouble, or just need someone to express my feelings to, I go to my friends for help. Another important character trait to have in your life is determination. Determination makes you want to finish something you have started even when it might be challenging. It gets you to go outside of the box and do things that you feel are important to you.
Both of these themes are portrayed in this book, and should be shown in my life. Symbolism: A main example of symbolism in this book is actually the maze itself. In this story, the maze represents life. Life can be confusing, hard, and you can bump into obstacles along the way, but there’s always a way out. The maze in this story shows what it’s like to live a hard life, especially in the Glade. You never know what things will come into your way. Sometimes in life, it feels like you have come to a dead end. Nothing seems to go right, and you feel as if you’ll never find a way out.
Overall, the maze served an important purpose in this book. Another important example of symbolism is the box. At the beginning of the book, the author tells us that each one of the characters from the story arrived in a metal chamber in which the Gladers called “The box. ” The box represents re-birth and renewing. Everyone from the story is from another world and arrived in this box. Nobody knows where the box leads to and how it got there. I definitely think that both of these factors play an important role of developing the story, and think that they have their own meaning.
Conclusion: This story was very motivating and sometimes a bit disturbing. Some parts of the story were very terrifying and left the reader wondering what would happen. “Kill me! ” And then Newts eyes cleared, as if he’d gained one last trembling gasp of sanity, and his voice softened. “Please, Tommy, please. ” With his heart falling into a black abyss, Thomas pulled the trigger. This was a part of the story that portrayed emotions and fear. While reading you really begin to feel bad for the characters as they go through their struggles.
The author of this book, James Dashner, truly gave his full ability when writing this book. He used great action verbs and definitely made the reader wonder what would happen next. He was very detailed in his writing and didn’t leave out anything. The main part of the book that was confusing to me, was when the Gladers first began speaking their strange language. Obviously it became clear to me what was going on but it took a little while. Overall, the book was phenomenal. It contained a lot of action and adventure, and I would definitely recommend it to others.