Heroes — From Whom We Expect Sacrifices
Spoiler Alert: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. This blog is my perception of the book and what made me think out loud.
Heroes make sacrifices — physically and mentally. We praise them and respect them at those moments or till the moment they refuse to sacrifice anymore.
In movies and books, if heroes decide to not sacrifice anymore, we brace ourselves for a short period of “wishing” they snap out of it — may be a life threat or death of someone close to them or the Earth.
The Context
The book, Project Hail Mary is a brilliant read. It is a perfect combination of humour, science, fiction, and space. The publisher’s blurb tells it all, including the big revelation that there are aliens. But the highlight for me was the disappointment I felt when I found that Rayland Grace was sent to this suicide mission against his will.
This information is revealed towards the end of the book. I have already read about his brilliant discovery on the alien species threatening our Sun, his decision to leave his normal life and move to Antarctica where the world’s most renowned scientists are working on solving this crisis, his efforts to survive on a spaceship alone, befriending another alien, manoeuvring the spaceship with his limited memory, doing EVA jobs…
But him being on the spaceship against his will bothered me. Why?
Because I expect our heroes to make sacrifices willingly. We take them for granted.
It is so common that we have turned blind eyes towards this behaviour. Actors making one slip in their conversation, good and kind people expressing an unpopular opinion, sportsmen not performing for one match, and countless more examples.
I am going to work on this. I do hope next time I come across any hero, in any field or even books I will be empathetic.
The Conclusion
I first discovered this book in the Holiday Book List — 2021 by Bill Gates. The book was then recommended to me by a trusted source (my librarian). I enjoyed it tremendously and finished it in a week.
Fictions usually take us on a journey into someone else’s world but there are times when they help us acknowledge our shortcomings.
But do not let this morbid tale give you a sense that it was not funny. I am a software developer and I found many instances in the book that made me laugh at the similarities with my work. Give it a read if you are a software developer too.
Was there a book that made you question your humanity? Let me know in the comments? Did you write the review? I would love to read it, give the links in the comments.
Thank you for reading.
