Andrew is one of the young men who survived the landing, distinguished primarily by his presence and his tragic role as the victim of the first act of violence committed by a member of the new colony. He serves as a symbol of the group’s fragility and the devastating consequences of personal arrogance and loss of self control.
The Follower: Andrew is one of the four young men who emerge immediately after Collin from the first landed ship. He is not given the same sense of urgency or distinctiveness as Collin or Kaya; he is primarily a member of the collective. His white jumpsuit and presence confirm his role as one of the hopeful, new generation.
Cooperative and Supportive: His personality is defined by his willingness to engage in the work of the colony. He is present and willing to help. This is most clearly displayed in his interaction with Jeremiah, where he offers assistance with Jeremiah’s rudimentary vehicle project. This shows he is cooperative and adheres to the mission’s core value of mutual decisions and shared effort.
Andrew’s challenges are largely external, making him a passive victim rather than a character with deep internal conflict.
The Challenge of Utility: Andrew’s role highlights a flaw in the group’s philosophical training. While the goal is cooperation, the intellectual pride displayed by Jeremiah suggests that not all members are valued equally. Andrew’s offer to help is rejected by Jeremiah with the curt, prideful statement, “No, I’ll get it,” revealing a subtle but dangerous rift between the thinkers and the doers.
The Symbol of Innocence Lost: His primary narrative function is to be the casualty of the new world. He is killed, not through a natural disaster or an external threat, but by the internal failure of one of his own comrades. This makes his death profoundly significant: it proves that the “Killer Earth” philosophy, the capacity for human violence and evil was not left behind, but carried in the hearts of the survivors.
Andrew’s ultimate display is his death and its consequences, which force the group to confront the true state of their new society.
The Accidental Death: Andrew is killed when Jeremiah, frustrated and asserting his independence, hits him with a metal wheel. It is an “accidental” murder, which paradoxically makes it even more tragic and damning. It was not a planned act of malice, but a spontaneous, momentary failure of self control, exactly the kind of human flaw the survivors were taught to fear and avoid.
The Catalyst for Judgment: Andrew’s death forces Jenny and the group to make their first difficult judgment call. They must decide how to handle murder and whether to sacrifice one person to preserve the moral purity of the whole. The decision to banish Jeremiah directly stems from Andrew’s fate, making Andrew the catalyst for the colony’s first major act of philosophical justice.
The End of Illusion: Andrew’s fate shatters the illusion of Thrae as a pure sanctuary. He is the first young person to die, not in the crash, but in the internal workings of the colony, proving that the threat they face is themselves. His brief life and accidental death serve as a grim warning to the others about the fragility of their hope.
