Chapter 10-18
Reread the first few pages of Chapter 11, which tells about the effects of multiple hurricanes on New Orleans. The history begins with Hurricane Katrina, which is a real story that happened in 2005. However Hurricanes Lorenzo and Jesus that came next in the novel are not real storms. Chapter 11 says the following:
Thirty thousand people had huddled inside the Superdome after the first of the big storms. Katrina turned the Dome into a refugee camp. Lorenzo turned it into a morgue. Jesus turned it into a tomb.
Having just reread the first few pages of Chapter 11, write a paragraph that unpacks the quote above. How did Hurricane Katrina turn the Superdome into a refugee camp? How did Hurricane Lorenzo turn it into a morgue? How did Hurricane Jesus turn it into a tomb?
Then, in a second paragraph, think back to that definition of dystopian fiction from last week’s discussion post. If the point of dystopian fiction is to show us what could happen in the near future if we don’t solve the problems happening now, what might author Sherri Smith be warning us about hurricanes and New Orleans?