The Light Pirate

Wanda’s story is a testament to humans’ capacity to adapt and determination to survive. She gains most of her survival skills from her training with Phyllis, who has devoted her life to preparing for the end of civilization: “Data collection and biology became the focal point of her education. Drawing, fishing, canning, gardening, and first aid were also core subjects” (236). After the federal government declares the state unsafe, most of Rudder’s residents flee from Florida in the vain hope that doing so will spare them from the effects of environmental disasters. Just as some plants and animals die out in the swamps that overtake the town while other species thrive, so, too, the people who remain must adapt if they are to survive. Wanda and Phyllis rely on their skills and understanding of nature while others, most notably Corey and his father, plunder and attack people. Thus, the protagonist must adapt not only to nature’s violence but also to humanity’s violence. The break-in forces her to kill the two intruders in self-defense, and Wanda and Phyllis decide that the best way to ensure their continued survival is to move into the swamp. Although they are meant to protect Wanda, Phyllis’s teachings harm her protégé in some ways.