Station Eleven: Chapter 41 Summary & Analysis

After receiving the news of Arthur’s death, Miranda sits on the beach for a while, thinking about Arthur. Slowly, she begins to realize that she is tired and feeling slightly ill. She heads back to the lobby, which is deserted, and receives a look of terror from an employee. She then makes her way up to her room and turns on the news.

Once she is aware of the Flu and the emerging collapse, it is too late for her to leave Malaysia, since all of the airports are closed. As Miranda starts feeling sicker and sicker, she tells herself that it’s just in her head, and begins working on Station Eleven to calm herself.

At four in the morning, Miranda awakes with a fever and aches and pains. She struggles to make her way across the room to her desk and laptop, and when she reads the latest news, she understands what’s happening to her. In her feverous delirium, she decides that staying in the room will only make her sicker, that she needs to leave now before she’s unable to, and that at the beach, someone might be able to help her. She staggers through the hotel, extremely weakened by the Georgia Flu. At one point she sees a sick man curled up on the floor, and looks at him in an attempt to communicate solidarity. The lobby is empty, as the hotel staff has fled.

Outside, Miranda sees the beginning of sunrise. Though she is very weak, she makes it to the beach, where she passes out alone. She becomes utterly exhausted and extremely hot, then very cold, as well as delirious and confused. No one comes to help her. For a moment, she thinks about the fleet of boats on the horizon, wondering if the crew on the boats has managed to avoid being exposed to the Flu. It makes her happy knowing that some people in the world are safe. She has just enough energy to open her eyes and watch the sunrise, which brilliantly illuminates the sky and sends Miranda into visions of Station Eleven before she dies on the beach.