Page "Z for Zachariah" Paragraph 19

Seeing the story as a conflict between an innocent girl and a domineering scientist bent on controlling the valley, reviewers have found themes such as the destructiveness of science ( at least when it is separated from conscience ), the corrupting effect of the masculine desire for power, and the moral value of individual freedom.

Ann ’ s sensitivity and love of nature are viewed as contrasting with Loomis ’ s callous reasoning and selfish compulsion to take control.

Writing for The Spectator in April 1975, Peter Ackroyd concludes that “ science turns paradise sour .” Reviews the same year in The Junior Bookshelf and Times Literary Supplement described Ann as an unwilling Eve who “ finally refuses to begin the whole story over again ,” apparently viewing the end of the human story as a good thing.