Year of Wonders

Throughout the historical novel of ‘Year of wonders’ by Geraldine Brooks, human nature has shown to bringing out the best of people as well as brining out the worst in people according to the tragic events which occur. Furthermore, some characters turn to superstition through catastrophic events while others turn towards science and nature of helping others in need.
Anna shows her best of human nature through the tragic time of the Plague. She carried on throughout her life even through an abusive childhood, an early widowhood and the tragic loss of her boys, ‘I disliked myself for giving way to that fear’. Anna drew on her physical and emotional resources to survive. Besides her personal tragedies and losses, Anna is still able to feel sorrow for others and helping those who are in need. Anna discovers her real courage when she turns ‘pale’ at the thought of delivering Mary Daniels baby, by still being haunted of memories of her own mothers brutal death in childbirth. Likewise, Mery Wick ford’s benefit fills Anna with terror to assist the child by risking her own life by going underground to the mine ‘My cowardice shamed me’. As a result of this, Anna was able to show her best of human nature, even through extremely tragic events of the Plague.
Elinor showed potential of showing her best throughout times of Human nature as well as showing the bad in human nature. Elinor was a proud character who never saw herself as above others through class. By this, Elinor saw Anna as her friend rather than her slave and a lower class; she did however see Anna as an uneducated and low confidence woman. Elinor showed her best of Human Nature through helping Anna to improve on her education which lead Anna to have a higher sense of power and more confidence which allowed Anna to do things she could have never been able to do before, ‘…as I loved to learn, she loved to teach’. However, Elinor still weighed herself heavily of the burden from her passed by destroying the life of...