Annihilation Themes

In Annihilation, four women on a government expedition explore a mysterious wilderness preserve called Area X. The narrator—an unnamed biologist—is inexplicably drawn to the different landmarks and environments in Area X, but the more observations the biologist makes, the less she seems to understand. By book’s end, she recognizes how incomprehensible yet beautiful Area X is, contrasting it with the mundane nature of her life back home. This notion of a world both…

Annihilation’s narrator—an unnamed biologist—describes the mysterious Area X as a “pristine wilderness.” By contrast, the world where humans live (outside Area X’s border) has been spoiled. But the biologist’s work and life experiences have taught her about nature’s ability to reclaim human environments, such as an abandoned swimming pool or an empty lot. It seems that nature is actually more powerful than humanity—and Area X is constantly expanding beyond its borders, which seems…

When the biologist first arrives in Area X, she prizes objectivity. As scientists, she and the other members of the team rely on facts: they collect samples and measurements, which are meant to help them classify Area X’s characteristics. At the same time, the biologist realizes that Area X is skewing their perceptions of the world around them, and the team suddenly disagrees about basic realities: is the passageway that leads to Area X a…