In the novel On The Beach, by Nevil Shute, Peter Holmes is a very intricate person. Peter is one of the few people left alive after a nuclear war in the Northern Hemisphere, which killed everyone there. The radiation is slowly drifting southwards towards Australia where he lives with his family. Even though death is near, Peter still serves in the Navy and makes life as enjoyable as possible. Peter Holmes is seen to be …showed first 75 words of 928 total…

…showed last 75 words of 928 total…that they will die soon. Peter and everyone know that they will die soon, yet no one does anything about it. Everyone just takes life like nothing has changed. This is interesting in respect that they really do not mind that death is coming. Everyone seems to embrace it. Seeing and knowing that death is near can be good but it can be scary also, and the people do not seem to mind at all.