Annihilation Discussion Qs

1) What have we learned about the border? Where is it? How stable is it? How might these revelations about the nature of the border connect to the larger theme of climate change in the novel?

2) The California Mastadon roamed the land on which we sit right now up until the end of the last Ice Age, along with sabercats, giant ground sloths, and other megafauna (large versions of the animals you see today such as bears, etc). Discuss specific moments throughout the novel when the theme of transformation of the earth and landscape are prominent. What literary tools does Vandermeer use to remind us that the earth is constantly transforming, and always has been?

3) Reread the biologists experience staring at the destroyer of worlds starfish on page 175, then reread her experience staring at the Crawler on 177 and 178. Why does the biologist say that she cannot truly "see" the Crawler? What might be the deeper implications of her being unable to process what she is seeing?

4) The biologist says that her gift is "that places could impress themselves upon me, and I could become a part of them with ease." She also says she easily recognizes "the interconnectivity of all living things." How do these gifts of the biologists' ensure her survival?

5) Why do you think the author does not solve the mystery of who or what the Crawler is? What effect does this have upon the reader?

6) In what ways are we cut off from the inter-connectivity of all living things in our culture? What about in our daily lives? What underlying feelings does this cause in us?



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