Genre
Non-fiction
Setting and Context
Majorly set at USAMRIID in Fort Detrick, Maryland.
Narrator and Point of View
Narrated in third-person from the perspective of Richard Preston.
Tone and Mood
Foreboding, Cautionary, Solemn, Suspenseful
Protagonist and Antagonist
The scientists and researchers are the protagonists while the biological agents including Ebola, smallpox, and anthrax are the antagonists.
Major Conflict
The big question after the Smallpox Eradication Program is whether every sample of the virus should have been destroyed. However, the fear of its potential as a bioterrorism agent demands the storage of samples in freezers which also poses some risks.
Climax
The book lacks an apparent climax.
Foreshadowing
“In the last ten days,” he remarked to me, “we’ve had fourteen different anthrax scares. Everybody and his brother is threatening to use anthrax. Of course, a real bioterror event is going to happen one of these days.”
D. A. Henderson foreshadows the use of anthrax as a biological weapon case in point the bioterror attacks in October 2001.
Understatement
“A well plate full of Ebola soup contains up to five million lethal doses of the virus—in theory, enough Ebola to make half of New York City crash and bleed out. Yet handling Ebola soup is no more dangerous than walking down a busy street. You could be killed if you stepped in front of a bus, but careful people watch where they are going.”
Allusions
The book alludes to the anthrax attacks following the 9/11 terror attack that brought attention to the debate about biological agents in existence.
Imagery
“The red spots merged and flooded together, until much of her skin turned deep red, and her face turned purplish black. The skin became rubbery and silky smooth to the touch, with a velvety, corrugated look, which is referred to as crêpe-rubber skin. The whites of her eyes developed red spots, and her face swelled up as it darkened, and blood began to drip from her nose. It was smallpox blood, thick and dark.”
Paradox
The paradox is the existence of stored smallpox virus as a defense measure in case of an outbreak of the disease.
Parallelism
Preston parallels the smallpox eradication program in the 20th century with the anthrax bioterror attacks in the wake of the 21st century.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
“It will absolutely shut down international trade, and it will make 9/11 look like a cakewalk.”
Personification
The author personifies the biological agents, as in the title. For instance “The smallpox had been sleeping peacefully in the freezer…”
