THE MARTIAN

CONTRASTS & CONTRADICTION

• I would have expected Watney, the main character, to leave Mars alive because of his determination to survive.
• I did not expect Watney to find so many ways to survive on a planet with no life, no water, and a harsh environment.

AHA MOMENTS:

• When the hab (Watney's space house) got destroyed by accident, Watney needed to quickly find a fix to survive before he ran out of air.
• When traveling over the plains, Watney noticed a sand storm was coming. He was able to avoid the storm by using math and an experiment.

TOUGH QUESTIONS

• When Watneys' crew was almost back to earth they had a choice, go back to Mars and save Watney (which was risky) or stay on course and return home safely.
• What if Watney has to stay on Mars forever. What would he do?

WORDS OF THE WISER

• N.A.S.A sends Watney directions to make the ship lighter for take off.
• N.A.S.A tells him to watch his language because what he was saying was being boardcast live around the world.
• Never give up!

Again and again:

• Watney kept facing problems that almost killed him.
• The story keeps shifting between what is going on at N.A.S.A, on Earth, on the shuttle and on Mars.

Memory moment:

• When Watney created and grew a supply of potatoes so he would not run out of food.
• When Watney establishes communication with Earth from Mars.