The Scarlet Plague

Do the characters change throughout the course of the story? How does London depict this change? Choose one or two of the main characters as the focus of your discussion.

Consider how London creates tension in the narrative, concentrating in particular on the plague sequences.

Discuss the role that food plays in the book and how it contributes to the book’s main themes.

Learning and education are prominent themes in the book. Discuss how they relate to the theme of societal collapse.

Consider the ways in which the plague caused social breakdown. How did it affect friendship, social bonds, and trust? What does this suggest about the nature of such feelings and relationships?

Compare and contrast the characters of Bill and Hare-Lip. What do their trajectories imply about human nature, in London’s telling?

Toward the end of the novella, Smith describes how people took measures to form families and perpetuate the human species. How do their efforts contrast with family formation under “normal” social conditions, and how does this contribute to the work’s overall meaning?

London depicts human beings as characterized by cruelty, cowardice, or indifference both during and after the plague. Yet there are exceptions to this: Discuss instances of kindness or empathy in the book, considering how they contrast with the norm and relate to the book’s major themes.