The Great Weep The occasional whimper or small cry can usually be heard at a funeral or from a person in distress. A whimper can also be an excellent way to end a theatrical novel. To begin a novel however, one must set the tone for the reader in order to gain their valuable interest. Shute accomplished this by beginning his novel with T.S. Elliot’s “The Wasteland”. Nevil Shute chose to begin his novel with T.S. Elliot’s “The Wasteland” because this powerful poem sets the stage for the dramatic context of the world created by Shute. Pursuing this further, the mood created by “The Wasteland” is dreadfully dark and gloomy. The poem begins saying, “In this last of meeting places we grope together and avoid speech”. This line from the poem undoubtedly sets the mood for the rest of the poem. T.S. Elliot’s repetition of “This is the way the world ends” also contributes to the dark feeling that is masterfully created by “The Wasteland”. Shute’s decision to begin his novel with “The Wasteland” was an excellent way to hook the reader into the story and foreshadow the dark events to come. The mood set by “The Wasteland” is certainly identical to the overall mood of the novel. Throughout the novel, excitement was short lived and often times confused with false hope. For example, when the investigation of the Seattle radio signal ended with a failed expectation, the Jorgensen theory was disproved and thus added to the eerie mood carried throughout the novel. When the main characters commit the ultimate act of self destruction, one could only feel a looming sadness inside. This sense of uneasiness is the most frequent feeling felt when reading the novel. Shute, without question chose to end his novel with a whimper not a bang. The in-depth suicides of Peter and Mary in bed, their baby Jennifer injected by a syringe, Dwight’s honorable plunge into the depths of the ocean, John’s death by cyanide pill in his luxurious Ferrari and Moira’s suicide by capsule taken with brandy can only make one feel as if the novel ended with a whimper. Some might argue and claim that Shute ended his novel with a bang; however this is certainly not true. The radiation sickness, which slowly crept up upon the characters, was a contributing factor in the illnesses brought