11. There is no mention of Mark having a romantic relationship on Earth. Do you think that makes it easier or harder to endure his isolation? How would the story be different if he was in love with someone back home?

Unlike others, I do not believe in love being this powerful emotion that can strengthen anything, but I do believe in it influencing people’s actions. If Mark Watney would have had a girlfriend or wife back on Earth I believe he would have had another factor to survive. I completely disagree with the idea of him becoming depressed due to the fact that he is a fighter. Granted it is hard to imagine the story having an emotional touch due to the fact that he doesn’t have a romantic relationship back on Earth. Yet, he does not have a significant other back on Earth and he still has a reason to fight and survive, which backs up the idea of Mark using the passion of love to fight for his life. He is a driven character who has a will to survive. The only reason he would ever struggle with the isolation is the fact that he is not use to being alone from his loved one or that he begins to think about how he may never see him or her again. Thinking about it more now, I guess depression could cause him to give up slight hope and the will to fight for his life. Going to back to my initial stance, the space program took up so much of his time and devotion that he was basically trained to be a fighter. So, if he would have been devoted to a person more than the space program those survival skills could be weaker which lead to depression and giving up. Ultimately the topic of love being involved in a story can change the plot and characters choices in so many ways. It is hard to determine what Mark Watney would have done if he would of had a significant other back on Earth. I would like to hope that Mark would have a stronger will to survive but there is the possibility that he goes into a deep depression

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