Essay Questions

Show how Justin Cronin explores the concept of manipulation in The Twelve.

Manipulation is a concept that runs deep in Justin Cronin’s The Twelve. From characters who employ deceptive techniques and methodologies to get their way and escape to what can be termed as the freedom, to manipulation in order to emotionally blackmail, characters in the novel epitomize the theme in question. For instance, Babcock employs deceptive means to get her way out of freedom and even goes own to say that she would kill anyone who dared come into her way. Additionally, Amy Belafonte is also one of the characters that suffer the effects of manipulation as the society is always on her neck to find a cure. Manipulation is indeed at the core of this masterpiece.

Discuss the fight between good and evil, as brought out in Justin Cronin’s The Twelve. What role does the interaction of these two aspects play in the novel?

Throughout the novel, the clash between right and wrong, as well as good and evil, is explicit. The novel-write John Cronin employs characters in the novel that embody both good and evil as an attempt to bring to light the chaos that occurs resulting from the clash of these two aspects. In particular, Amy Belafonte represents good. Her particular dedication to finding a cure against vampirism is evident. Also, she presents the struggles that good has to endure in order to prevail against evil. On the other end, Babcock as an epitome and symbol of evil following her dedication to eliminating everyone that poses a threat to her existence as well as that of her people. These two aspects are presented to clash, resulting in a story that is rather interesting and well-curated.