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Orbit 7
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Orbital, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Isolation and the Limits of Human Connection
Time, Perception, and Alienation
Memory and Grief
Human Influence and Environmental Responsibility
Nature’s Power and Indifference
Summary
Analysis
The space station moves over the southwestern United States, passing over deserts, dried riverbeds, and eroding craters where Apollo astronauts once trained. Below, the Great Lakes reflect the afternoon sun, and as the ship moves east, Europe comes into view. While the crew continues their routine tasks, the typhoon intensifies on the other side of the world, preparing to make landfall in the Philippines.
The typhoon below is a reminder that the crew’s role is purely observational. They are separated from Earth’s struggles, watching events unfold without the ability to intervene. Space travel offers knowledge, but it also strips away agency, turning them into spectators rather than participants.
Themes
Nell glances at Earth and is struck by how improbable it seems that her loved ones live there. The vastness of space makes the planet look almost surreal, like a palace seen from afar. She remembers arriving at the station three months ago with Roman and Shaun, where they were crammed into a small module. Their capsule docked, and after a tense wait for pressure equalization, they joined the crew already aboard—Anton, Pietro, and Chie. The moment of entry was overwhelming. They were greeted with embraces, handshakes, and the Russian tradition of bread and salt. Yet soon after, they were in front of a screen, speaking to their families, who seemed unfamiliar, as if they were part of a life that was now distant.
Nell’s detachment from her loved ones shows how space reshapes identity. Distance does not simply separate; it alters perception, making what was once familiar seem unreal. The shift happens quickly, as what was once home becomes a memory, and human connection begins to lose its grounding. Even the act of seeing her family through a screen reinforces how space replaces direct experience with distant images, reducing personal relationships to something abstract.
Themes
Their first night in space was disorienting. Roman experienced nausea and vivid dreams of his son, while Shaun dealt with similar discomfort. By morning, everything felt new—their clothes fresh from sealed packets, their swollen, pale faces adjusting to weightlessness. Roman, experienced in spaceflight, taught the newcomers how to move smoothly in microgravity, repeating the mantra: “Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.” Over time, they adapted, shedding habits from Earth.
In space, the new astronauts are unmoored: their instincts can’t help them anymore. The body must relearn how to move, but more than that, the mind must accept an entirely new reality. Roman’s mantra, “Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast,” is not just about movement, it is about survival. The crew cannot approach life in space with Earthbound habits. Their ability to function depends on letting go of old ways of thinking, making their transformation both physical and psychological.
Themes
After six months in space, Pietro notices how his body has changed. He has grown thinner, his appetite has faded, and his sleep is shallow. Life in orbit feels simplified, his thoughts quieter, without the avalanche of distractions from Earth. In his first month, he experienced intense longing for his wife, remembering details of her body and their life together. Then, after a spacewalk with Nell, he had a romantic dream about her. Embarrassed by the dream, he avoided Nell the next day. Since then, those feelings have faded, as if his body understands there is no use for them here.
Pietro’s fading emotions reveal how space does not allow for longing. The body does not waste energy on what it cannot have, and isolation strips away the need for human closeness. Attraction, love, and even grief weaken in a place where survival comes first. The mind adapts by shutting down attachments, ensuring that emotions do not become burdens. The longer Pietro stays, the more distant his past life becomes, until even his own feelings seem foreign.
Themes
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