The Maze Runner Suspense Development- Katie Consiglio

How The Maze Runner By: James Dashner Creates Suspense

Katie Consiglio

            The Maze Runner is the story of a teenage boy, Thomas, who has been sent to an unknown location referred to as The Glade. He has no memory of his life before arriving at The Glade (or so he thinks) and is trying to learn the ways of the other boys living there as well, the Gladers. None of the boys know who sent them there or why they were sent to this place but work together to try and survive. “They stood in a vast courtyard several times the size of a football field, surrounded by four enormous walls made of gray stone and covered in spots with thick ivy ”(5). Surrounding The Glade is a giant, complicated Maze to trap them inside without an easily accessible exit. Some of the Gladers have lived there for as long as two years but no one has ever found a way out of The Maze.

            The author of The Maze Runner creates suspense throughout the novel by using different techniques. One technique the author uses is the reader's understanding of Thomas’ thoughts. Thomas has just been brought into a strange world with very little memory of anything, including himself, and since the reader is only able to see things from his perspective, they know very little about the situation as well. Not knowing what exactly is happening can be very suspenseful because the reader does not have an idea of what will happen next. "The thought surprised him, as if its source had been founded in actual memory, a wisp of light in the darkness of his mind. But it was already gone"(203).

            Another way the author of The Maze Runner creates suspense is by his use of time throughout the novel. In the novel, it is said that if someone gets trapped in The Maze overnight, they will be killed by horrific beasts called Grievers. Therefore, the people who explore The Maze during the day (the Runners) need to make sure they get back to The Glade in enough time before the doors of The Maze close. It's a constant battle against time for the Runners to return to safety from the Grievers. This keeps the reader on edge wondering whether or not everyone will be okay. "They weren't going to make it. Time was up. That was it"(112).