204 reviews for:

The Scarlet Plague

Jack London

3.49 AVERAGE

efwizzabeff's review against another edition

Go to review page

medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
I can't really do apocalyptic content rn, it's depressing me and stressing me out. given our world. so it's terrible that I'm in a literature class with a focus on plagues in stories 😭😭 everyone pray the bird flu doesn't evolve past what it's at right now like I'll flip out.

anyway. very interesting book, especially with its very prominent idea of the loss of knowledge and a total lack of education. for uhhh no reason in particular it feels especially relevant. we need to keep getting smart people!! say no to ignorance!! I think it's sooo interesting how his grandsons tease him for using words they don't know or for mentioning an idea they have no concept of. they think he's the dumb one even tho they're literally stupid. who does that remind me of . . .

awwgustt's review against another edition

Go to review page

1.75

good storytelling, but london was very clearly exceptionally racist, classist, sexist, and ableist, which ruined the whole novella for me

thestarcatcher's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

JoglosemarRC2021


Bertema disaster/pandemi/apocalypse



Musim panas tahun 2013, penyakit aneh menyerang kota New York. Diberitakan terjadi beberapa kematian yang begitu cepat, ditandai dengan wajah dan tubuh yang berubah menjadi merah. Dalam waktu 24 jam, penyakit tersebut diberitakan juga melanda Chicago. Bahkan kota London sebenarnya sudah dilanda penyakit aneh ini sejak dua minggu lalu, tetapi menyembunyikannya dari umum dengan melarang media memberitakannya.
.
.
Professor James Howard Smith yang saat itu berusia 27 tahun dan tinggal di California awalnya meremehkan penyakit itu dan menganggapnya seperti penyakit lain yang akan segera ditemukan obatnya. Tetapi kematian tiba-tiba seorang murid yang sehat dan bugar di hadapannya mengubah pandangannya. Kematian semakin meluas karena terjadi begitu cepat, hanya dalam satu jam sejak gejala awal muncul. Jenazah yang tak sempat terurus dan dikubur tergeletak begitu saja di pinggir jalan menyebabkan penyakit semakin menyebar, karena penyakit aneh ini merusak tubuh penderitanya begitu cepat saat meninggal. Sehingga kuman di dalam jenazah lebih cepat keluar dan menyebar.
.
.
.
Di saat orang di sekitarnya meninggal satu-persatu Professor Smith berhasil selamat dan hanya segelintir orang saja yang dia tahu berhasil selamat dari pandemi ini. Orang-orang yang berhasil selamat ini mulai membentuk suku-suku mereka sendiri.
.
Sekarang, 60 tahun sejak pandemi terjadi, kehidupan seakan kembali ke masa yang jauh. Pakaian dari kulit hewan, tak ada uang, tak ada alat telekomunikasi, tak bisa membaca, dan lain-lain. Professor Smith, satu-satunya orang yang selamat dari pandemi dan masih bertahan hidup merasa sedih dengan kemunduran ini dan berharap agar populasi manusia berhasil meningkat seiring berjalannya waktu.
.
.
.
.
.
Di novel diceritakan pandemi terjadi di tahun 2013, tetapi di novel ini tahun segitu masih ada perbudakan.
Sayang sekali novel pendek ini terlalu pendek huhu.

escalada's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

Una joyita

dragonsandfoxes's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Complicated

5.0

isafacethemoon's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

A short-amazing-story about a pandemic that ends the human population, though it gives a chance for another civilization to rise.
London's vision about the "civilization circle of life" reinforces that humanity is unable to escape from the same mistakes.
That is indeed a problem that will lead us, humans, to an inevitable end.

jediric's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

2.5

scrooge3's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

A realistic dystopian fantasy about the end of humanity caused by a pandemic. No real plot, just a thinly disguised essay about the dangers of infectious disease and what the world would devolve to if humans are wiped out.

kaysi110's review against another edition

Go to review page

informative reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

Getting to experience an older book that was another original sci-fi was really neat. I love that 2013 was the apocalypse even though now we are way past that in real time; but 2013 was one hundred years in the future for the author! It was interesting to read about the future advancements the book describes to what was actually here…with the apocalypse caveat of course. The writing was not engaging for me and the characters were not likable for me, But I still enjoyed the telling.