Week 4: Annihilation

     I was somewhat familiar with the world of Annihilation after having seen the movie in theaters a while back. However, reading the original novel by Jeff Vandermeer was a totally different experience. If I had to choose between the two, I would probably say I enjoyed the movie a bit more. This is definitely because of the visuals and the characterization. The movie characters have a lot more defined personalities than their book counterparts (who aren’t even assigned names). However, I do not intend this to be a criticism of the book. I can acknowledge that the movie’s choice was one to help the viewer feel more attached and comfortable with the characters. That choice served to make the film more appealing to a general audience. But the ambiguity of the book characters adds to the overall strange feeling of this story. Just like how the biologist does not need to find spiritual or deep meaning in the existence of the anomalies of area X, the readers are ultimately not given the satisfaction of “clear meaning” to nearly anything that occurs in the book.

     Something I really enjoyed about the book was the fascinating descriptions of area X. The way in which the tower and the living words are explained allowed me to envision it so clearly. Since we are experiencing area X through the eyes of the biologist, the elements were described in the detailed way, and with a sense of awe and scientific admiration. The memory about the biologist’s overgrown pool reminded me of my own childhood, where I had a very strong interest in science, animals, and the natural world. Despite the horror elements of Annihilation, I was able to get wrapped up in a feeling of discovery and excitement, which made reading this novel a fun and interesting experience.