Galapagos

Mary Hepburn is the moral center of Galapagos. While the novel features no clear protagonist, her story is central to the narrative and central to the survival of the human species. Despite this, she begins her experience in Ecuador in a particularly tragic manner. She endured the drawn-out illness of her husband, Roy and, following his death, feels obliged to travel to Ecuador and embark on the cruise he booked for them in a pique of madness. Mary isn’t particularly interested in the Galapagos Islands. In fact, she’s quite bored of the Galapagos Islands after spending so long teaching schoolchildren about the islands as part of her job. She goes on the trip only as a way to mark the memory of her late husband. Without a job, without a partner, and without much purpose in life, Mary is despondent. After her clothes are stolen at the airport, she feels isolated and alone in the hotel room. She’s suicidal and comes close to killing herself. Mary’s lowest point occurs at the same time as the economic collapse that heralds the downfall of the world order. Society’s and Mary’s lowest points echo one another, and the suicidal tendencies of a widowed schoolteacher are emblematic of how human society is close to killing itself.