Michael Crichton has left an immortal mark on the minds of innumerable readers who have been left in an awe of the content and panache of his literary works which have proved to be among the most famous and influential works of art in the past century. Lost World, The Andromela Strain and Timeline have been extremely popular and genre defining novels. Jurassic Park (1990) is one of the best works penned by the stalwart author and goes on to produce a perfect mesh of theoretical scientific findings and technical advancements. The author caters the gazillion readers with a quintessential mystery novel that has lived on in the innermost cores of their hearts. The novel delves deep into the path of science fiction and makes an expedition to the world where the human race and dinosaurs are placed beside one another. It is really intriguing as well as thought-provoking to see the awkward interaction and the final outcome which the novel predicts. Jurassic Park’s influences are many during the 90s and it remains as the most successful novel by the author.
The setting of this novel is in a deserted island away from the humdrums of the cosmopolitan life. This island is covered with dense forests and it has long beaches. This immediately hogs the attention of the readers and sets up the mood for the transcendental ride in the chronology of the novel.
The end of the past century was marked by enormous scientific and technological advancements in the history of human kind. Having harnessed nuclear power and other discoveries, the scientific community now seemed to be delving deep into another major breakthrough. As such, genetic engineering was considered to be a decisive field of study which had the potential to create history. It is quite an interesting trivia that merely seven years after the publication of this novel, the first clone of a sheep was made by scientists. This novel had provided the readers across the world the first essence of the mammoth possibilities which were latent in bioengineering and genetics.
Another significant influence of this novel was that it made the mathematical field of chaos theory gain immense popularity. The laws of physics has argued the about the connection of cause and effect in nature for a long time. The physicists had assumed that it was possible to surmise the physical systems knowing the starting conditions perfectly. But, the emergence of chaotic theory shook this claim from the roots. The novel portrays the Jurassic Park as a complex physical system which works in an extremely unpredictable way and finally brings disaster nullifying all the precautions that were undertaken.
At the time when the author penned this novel, the progression of chaos theory and bioengineering ethics were seen as nascent topics of discussion. However, the unparalleled success of the novel catapulted these issues into the paramount positions of discussion across the entire globe. Crichton utilizes his novel to critique the huge companies which nurture the immense potential of utilizing the power of genetics and channelize that to fetch monitory gains, thus abusing the boon.
The novel portrays the character of John Hammond who goes on to create a park which is designed to be run solely by the automation of computer system. However, this system is infested with bugs which lead to horrific results, much beyond the darkest imagination of the creator, in the course of the next twenty-four hours. Thus, the novel stands tall as a loud critique of the incessant modernization and automation which shrouds human lives beyond imagination in the age of technological development. The calculation chaos theory and the imminent catastrophe by Malcolm is the greatest literary warning given out to the society about its dependence on technology which seems to be accentuating in leaps and bounds.
One of the most important influences of the novel is its ignition of the burning question of the modern times. The novel places the question of ethical disposition and morality related to scientific discoveries in the dais. On the one hand, the literary work was a voyage in the realm of imagination which freed the mind of the drudgeries of life and promoted the gazillion readers to envisage in their minds the surreal world of Jurassic Park.
The confluence of the pre-historic creatures and the modern man is an intrepid step in itself. The plot aptly challenges the linear nature of the timeline of world history and thus on the other hand raises the issue of ethics and functionality of vested interests involved in such scientific research and discoveries.
This is a very important aspect which needs to be given paramount importance in the light of the boom in the technological and scientific advancement of our age. In the novel, the cloning of the dinosaurs led to severe safety hazards and in the end Grant gets to know that some lizards have been spotted in the mainland of Costa Rica which went inside the dense forests and could not be traced any further.
The burning question is if we actually know how much is worth traversing in the name of scientific development. If it is logical to advance in any research which may have the latent potential to hinder human race and bring destruction and jeopardy should be considered with utmost importance by one and all. All these debates were evoked by the novel which had insurmountable influence among its readers.
The immense popularity and excellence of the novel led the stalwart filmmaker Steven Spielberg to adapt it into a film by the same title. The film portrayed the vivid description presented in the novel in apt audio-visual stimuli which left the audience across the globe flabbergasted at the sheer enormity and quintessence of the work. Together with the influence of great visual effects and narrative technique, the film became a huge success and was hailed all across the world.
The universality of the novel’s plot and appeal transcended beyond the constrictions of geographical boundaries and reaches the masses across several cultures and communities. The novel, Jurassic Park, is remembered in the history of literature and mankind as one of the most influential and inspiring science fiction novels of all time. From inspiring other writers to tread on the path to filling the hearts of his avid readers with pangs of superfluous emotions rising from the surreal imagery and description of the events, Michael Crichton has immortalized Jurassic Park. Not only does the author entertain, but even makes the reader think about the issues and concerns of the modern life and culture. Beyond doubt, this novel has spread its influence over the entire decade of the 90s and still remains fresh in the memory of the world.
Works Cited
Crichton, Michael. Jurassic Park. New York: Random House Publishing Group, 1990. Print.
