The Ghost Map

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In The Ghost Map author Steven Johnson vividly describes London’s cholera outbreak of 1854. Johnson follows Dr. John Snow and Reverend Henry Whitehead in their complex expedition to find the cause for the violent outbreak. From the finding the initial case to proving cholera as a waterborne illness, Johnson illustrates the events of the devastating week with enticing detail. The novel culminates in a final chapter discussing urban development and modern day challenges that today’s generation may face. The novel gives the 1854 crisis relevance in regard to twenty first century issues and gives the reader a greater perspective on the ways the mind can work to solve biological mysteries and bring about creative thought.

The novel is written as a nonfiction, third person narrative. The two main purposes of the novel are to …show more content…
The author’s style is appealing to the imagination and provides better societal context than a historical analysis essay or textbook could have. It paints the outbreak in a realistic and emotionally captivating way and makes the incident an important and relevant story rather than a historical fact to regurgitate at a later date. The novel challenges the reader to consider problems that today’s society faces and what they can do to think critically about these challenges.

Overall, The Ghost Map is an exciting read for the target reader. It presents a nonfiction event in an innovative way and immerses the reader in the context and setting of London in 1854. Unlike many historical novels, The Ghost Map is a page-turner that leaves the reader questioning the outcome and ability for scientific investigation to change traditional understanding. His final discussion gives present-day relevance to the story and provides realistic application to studying history and allowing it to shape the way people think

The Ghost Map Analysis

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However, the author claims that Snow’s map was revolutionary, writing, “Part of what made Snow’s map groundbreaking was the fact that it wedded state-of-the-art information design to a scientifically valid theory of cholera’s transmission. It was not the mapmaking technique that mattered; it was the underlying science that the map revealed.” He merged innovative design with accurate and detailed data. To make this combination…

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