The Chrysalids (John Wyndham)

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1. What is the genre?

Global—Society > Political

Secondary—Worldview > Revelation

2. What are the conventions and obligatory scenes for the genre?

Conventions

One Central Character with offshoot characters that embody a multitude of the main character’s personality traits: David is the central character.

Big Canvas (internal or external +social problem added by Status internal genre): North America centuries after an apocalyptic nuclear event: a society ruled by an intolerant religious orthodoxy that persecutes all forms of genetic difference.

Clear Revolutionary Point of No Return: When Sally and Katherine are taken, the telepaths understand they are no longer safe and those known to the Waknukian authorities must flee to survive.

Vanquished Are Doomed to Exile: Mutants are sterilized and banished to the fringes; Women who give birth to too many mutants are banished; babies born with genetic mutations are killed. After killing everyone on the battlefield, the woman from Zealand tells the telepaths not to mourn their deaths as their kind has no place in humanity’s future.

The Power Divide between those in power and the underclass is large: Most of the animal or human mutants are killed as babies. Individuals sympathetic to mutants are powerless to stand up to the tyranny of the Waknukian religion. When Aunt Harriet’s pleas for mercy fall on deaf ears and she tells David’s father, “I shall pray to God to send charity into this hideous world, and sympathy for the weak, and love for the unhappy and unfortunate,” she is found dead the next day.

Win-but-lose/lose-but-win ending: While David, Petra, and Rachel go from being persecuted outsiders to accepted members of Zealand society, other telepaths of the Waknuk community cannot be saved: Sally and Katherine are presumed dead and it’s unsure if Michael will ever make it to Zealand after he decides to return to Waknuk to reunite with Rachel.

Obligatory Scenes

Inciting Threat to the reigning power: Humans, animals, and plants with genetic mutations threaten Waknukian society’s moral “Purity” and its hoped-for return to some mythologized utopia people believed it was before the apocalypse.

Protagonist denies responsibility to respond: David, Uncle Axel, and those sympathetic to humans with mutations do not intervene to save their family and neighbours from death/banishment.

Forced to respond, protagonist lashes out: When the telepaths understand, with Uncle Axel’s help, their dangerous position within Waknukian society, they band together to conceal their difference so they can evade discovery by the authorities.

Initial strategy fails: The telepaths try to conceal their difference from Waknukian religious authorities, but this proves increasingly difficult and their behaviour eventually arouses suspicion.

Protagonist, realizing they must change their approach to turn the power tables, reaches all is lost moment: When Sally and Katherine are taken in for questioning and Katherine is tortured, the telepaths realized that co-existence with Waknukian society is an impossibility and those who can flee.

Revolution Scene: At the battle, several actors work to ensure Petra’s life, Rosalind’s safety, and ultimately the trio’s escape. Sophie risks her well-being to rescue Petra and Rosalind from Gordon’s tent and then conceals the trio in her cave. Michael works from within the Waknukian vigilante party to relay info to the telepaths. Petra uses her powers to bring the woman from Zealand to their rescue. The woman from Zealand uses her technology to kill everyone on the battlefield to ensure the survival of the telepaths. David’s friendship and bond with Sophie, created through his kindness so many years earlier, is instrumental in their survival as this is what motivates Sophie to risk her own well-bring to help him and his friends.

Protagonists Are Rewarded on one or more levels: David, Petra, Rosalind and their kind can look forward to a bright future in Zealand. On a larger scale, all of humanity has a positive future because of their evolution to telepathy. David and Rosalind will be free to pursue their romantic relationship. Petra’s gift will be fully realized and celebrated. Rachel and Michael, while left behind, have hope for a better future in Zealand.

Learn more about obligatory scenes and conventions.

3. What is the point of view?

POV: First Person (David’s POV as an account of past events)

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4. What are the objects of desire?

External/Conscious:            
Want: to remain concealed; survival          

Internal/Subconscious:
Need: acceptance as part of the group; love, self-acceptance.

Learn more about objects of desire.

5. What is the controlling idea / theme?

The persecuted find acceptance, power, and status only when they use their gifts to escape tyranny.

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6. What is the beginning hook, middle build and ending payoff?

Beginning Hook: David, a boy with telepathic powers, lives in a religious community in post nuclear-apocalypse world where mutants are killed are exiled. He befriends a girl named Sophie whom he’s not seen before. David discovers his friend Sophie is also mutant when he sees her six toes. David must decide whether to report Sophie to the authorities or keep her secret. When another boy discovers Sophie’s foot, David ends up betraying Sophie and her family when his father tortures him. Sophie’s family is exiled.

Middle Build: After Aunt Harriet and her mutant baby are murdered, David prays to be normal. David comes to terms with the fact that he’s a mutant and the dangerous position that puts him and the other telepathic children are in. David must choose whether to flee Waknuk for the dangerous fringes or remain and try to conceal his mutation. David along with the other children decide to try to live within their religious community. David and the other telepathic children remain with the community but live with the fear of being discovered.    

Ending Payoff: The telepaths’ strategies for evading suspicion and living a dual life fail. When the telepaths are discovered, Sally and Katherine are taken and Katherine is tortured. David, Rosalind and Petra, must choose whether to flee Waknuk or stay and face questioning and torture. They decide to flee to the fringes but are pursued by Waknukian authorities who eventually clash with the fringe people in a large battle. The ship from Zealand intervenes in the battle, killing everyone as the mutants. David, Rosalind, and Petra are transported to a new, more advanced society in Zealand, which she explains is the future of humanity.  Some of the mutant children are left behind, however.

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