Question

Here is an excerpt from “The Raft,” by S.A. Bodeen. Examine the line closely and explain its importance: “Dying was so much easier than I ever thought.”

CONTEXTUAL LINES:


My feet hurt when they hit the cold water, and I sank, feeling like I would never stop. Salt water poured in my open mouth as I screamed at the darkness swallowing me. I could see only black, could feel only the shock of cold and wet as I fell farther into the crushing nothing.

Am I dying?

Because if this was it, my last moments on Earth, I just wanted it to be over.

God, please kill me already. This is more than I can take.

And I floated down …

down …

down.

It was over.

I was over.

Dying was so much easier than I ever thought.

Answer 1

The line "Dying was so much easier than I ever thought" is important because it reveals the protagonist's mindset and the emotional weight she is carrying. It demonstrates that her experience has been so overwhelming that she is willing to accept death as a better alternative. This line highlights the extreme desperation and despair that the character is feeling, making the situation and the character's emotional state even more urgent for the reader.