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What is the most important passage in "The Cold Equations"?
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The most important passage in "The Cold Equations" is subjective, depending on what aspect of the story one prioritizes. Key passages include when Marilyn learns of her fate, highlighting the harsh realities of life on the frontier, and the moment she bravely faces her destiny, reflecting the story's theme of unavoidable sacrifice. Additionally, Barton's contemplation of his difficult decision emphasizes his thoughtful nature, underscoring the moral complexities of the situation.
The famous science fiction story "The Cold Equations" by Tom Godwin tells of a naive teenage girl named Marilyn who stows away aboard an EDS, or emergency dispatch ship, sent from a starship to a colony on a frontier planet. The EDS is carrying medical supplies that will save many lives, and it does not have the fuel to make it to its destination with two passengers. As a result, the pilot is forced to jettison the young girl into space.
Your question is a subjective one. Diverse readers may disagree about which passage in the story is most important. Your selection also may depend on whether you want to emphasize the passage's importance to characterization , plot, theme, or some other consideration. So I'll suggest a few possibilities, and then you can choose what you think is best. For instance, there are the few paragraphs in which...
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Marilyn first learns of her fate, and the pilot considers life on Earth in contrast to life on the frontier. The passage begins:
How hard it must be to accept her fate. She had never known danger of death; had never known the environments where the lives of men could be as fragile and fleeting as sea foam tossed against a rocky shore.
There is also the paragraph in which Godwin clearly delineates the stark problem the characters face:
The men of the frontier knew—but how was a girl from Earth to fully understand? H amount of fuel will not power an EDS with a mass of m plus x safely to its destination. To himself and her brother and parents she was a sweet-faced girl in her teens; to the laws of nature she was x, an unwanted factor in a cold equation.
The passage in which Marilyn walks bravely into the airlock to meet her fate is also very important.
He let her walk alone and made no move to help her, knowing she would not want it that way. She stepped into the airlock and turned to face him, only the pulse in her throat to betray the wild beating of her heart. "I'm ready," she said.
All of these passages are of crucial importance to this story. Read them over again, and then decide which one seems most important to you.
The denotation of a "most important passage" in any text can only be considered objective. When reading, people come to texts with different backgrounds, morals, upbringings, and ideologies. Therefore, each reads the story in a different way. To denote a singular passage as the most important in the text is impossible.
Therefore, an important passage in the story "The Cold Equations" is:
He leaned back in the pilot's chair and drew a deep, slow breath, considering what he would have to do.
This passage from the text shows the fact that Barton knows that something is going to happen. He recognizes the fact that whatever does happen, it will not be something that he can take lightly. He will be challenged; he will be pushed; he will need to contemplate many different things before making a decision.
This passage allows readers to define one aspect of Barton's character--the author has given readers an indirect clue as to the type of person Barton is. Barton is not one to make snap decisions. He is not one to take anything lightly. He is a "considerer", a "contemplater."