Book Report
DON’T
PANIC
The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was written by Douglas Adams and published in the year 1979. It is both a science fiction novel and a comedic read. Adams wrote this novel in a time when space exploration was on every human’s mind. The Americans had recently landed on the moon and the sky had no limit. No one knew how far humans could go or what else was out there. Adams wrote this book to allow humans to see the possibilities that lie in space and give them an entertaining read that would apply to everyone. The protagonist is a human named Arthur Dent. He is saved from Earth’s demolition by his friend, Ford Prefect, and they travel across the galaxy together. Arthur is the average English man who follows the same patterns every day. This large change makes it hard for him to adapt, but he soon gets used to his surroundings and is comfortable in a whole new world. The antagonist of this story is not a person, but the galaxy itself. The galaxy is constantly providing obstacles that give Arthur a tough opponent throughout the novel.
The story begins with Arthur Dent waking up to construction men trying to demolish his house. Just as his house is being destroyed, Vogon starships come to destroy Earth to make a galactic bypass. Moments before Earth is vaporized, Arthur’s friend Ford Prefect saves him and they hitch a ride with the Vogons. When the cruel Vogons catch the hitchhikers, they throw them off the ship into open space. A second before the two men die, they are picked up by the Heart of Gold. This ship was stolen by Ford’s cousin, Zaphod Beeblebrox, the president of the galaxy. Zaphod is headed to the improbable planet of Magrathea to find the Question to the Answer to Life. When they arrive, the planet is barren and they group splits to find any sign of life. They learn that Earth was created to solve The Question, but it was destroyed minutes before the Question was