Randy Bragg In Alas Babylon Essay, Research Paper

Randy Bragg, the protagonist of Pat Frank s Alas, Babylon, is a young man who really

has no direction in life when he is first introduced in the novel. He has a casual approach

to life and cares more about himself than anyone or anything else. After The Day ,

however, Randy learns to care more about the well-being of the community and becomes

a selfless hero. This is shown through his realization of the problem at hand, his

take-charge attitude, and the growing love for his new family .

In the novel, Randy is one of the first characters to realize after The Day , the

only way to survive is to discard his casual approach to life and totally reinvent himself.

The way of American life disintegrates before his eyes: food vanishes, gasoline becomes

gold, money is worthless paper, and banks are no longer significant. Abandoned pets

start behaving like wild animals, vicious gangs spring up on the roads, and nearby towns

become sinkholes of disease. Randy realizes that something must be done to keep his

friends and neighbors alive.

Because of his realization, Randy is well-prepared for almost anything to go

wrong. After attacks from the highwaymen, who steal from and kill people around the

community just because they can, Randy puts together and heads a regiment of troupes to

protect the community of River Road and Fort Repose. He comes up with a way to

eliminate the highwaymen. Also, when a man dies from contamination of radioactive

jewelry, Randy knows that it is a threat to his community and that leaving the dead

unburied could be inviting an epidemic . He decides to ask for help burying the man at

the town square, which has become the area of trade in Fort Repose. None of the men in

the square seem concerned with helping with the burial, so Randy persuades them by

threatening the men with a gun. In taking charge like this, Randy takes care of and

becomes the leader of his community.

Throughout the novel, the survivors of River Street, although very different

people, become very close. Randy, who has never cared much about anyone, finds

himself caring a lot about the people who are involved in his life as a result of the war.

These people, in a way, become his family , and he learns to really care for them.

When the rescue helicopter finally comes at the end of the novel, Randy realizes that

this [is] Randy s town and these [are] his people and he [knows] he will not leave

them.

At the beginning of the novel, Randy Bragg does not care for too much or have a

very important role in life. By the end of the novel, however, he has become the leader

of his community and found a new family in his neighbors and fellow survivors. Randy

Bragg is truly a changed man.