Imagine the world you know, ripped from your once soft hands, now turned into rough, dexterous weapons of defense and survival. family lost and the world plunged into an endless cycle of survival of the fittest, laughter and the celebration of life nothing but a distant memory of what you once knew. Where families and wayward souls are forced to live underground in a state of constant fear. That is the reality of the individuals in the book, ‘Metro 2033’.
The novel ‘Metro 2033’ is a 460 page, post-apocalyptic science fiction read, set in Moscow and published by Gollancz, a British-based publisher. Following the story of a young man named Artyom as he navigates this dangerous new realm. In his work, Dmitry Glukhovsky, is a Russian author born in Moscow, Russia in 1979. Glukhovsky thoroughly changed the ideas of Dystopian societies, where humanity is more of prey than a predator, unlike in the real world. Glukhovsky says he was inspired by his metro rides in his youth and the powerful feeling of being underground, pushing him to write the book and stories.
He fills this world with characters that fill various roles. Artyom fills the Luke Skywalker role, a young man in over his head trying to save what is left of humanity. Artyom’s stepfather, Alexei, serves as one of Artyom’s motivators to push him further into his goals and be one of the few pillars of support Artyom has left in this dangerous world. Khan serves as a wiser, more experienced figure who helps teach Artyom with a twist to his character to make him more interesting, under the belief that he is Genghis Khan reincarnated. ‘Metro 2033’ has these interesting characters to keep the feeling of a lost world and the reader’s interest locked into the story constantly.
Characters like this with a strong and poetic hand such as Glukhovsky’s to guide them make ‘Metro 2033’ a powerful story about humanity’s will to prevail and fight, playing with ideas of the indomitable human spirit and fighting for things bigger than ourselves. For example, Artyom’s entire character development is based around the realization of finding a bigger purpose to build himself upon, despite the many newly mutated monstrosities found in the Metro and the dangerous surface lurking above them. Artyom finds his way, arms his weapons and stands tall as he embraces his new role as a light bearer of a fallen people. A quote spoken by Khan perfectly summarizes Artyom’s character growth. “You reap what you sow. Force answers force, war breeds war, and death only brings death. To break this vicious cycle one must do more than act without any thought or doubt” (Glukhovsky) This represents on how to break through the dullness of failure and being lost, we must fight back and not surrender ourselves, for if we do, we will not defeat the problem, but only stoke the flames.
‘Metro 2033’ is a powerful book based around a dystopian society, showing the impact of warfare, a vicious cycle and how one brave soul can always bring light to the darkness, no matter how deeply buried beneath the surface.
