Jurassic Park: Key Facts

full title Jurassic Park

author Michael Crichton

type of work Novel

genre Science fiction, thriller

language English

time and place written Late 1980s, United States

date of first publication 1990

publisher Alfred A. Knopf

narrator The narrator is always a single, detached third person voice; generally, the perspective changes several times within a chapter, switching from character to character; the narrator describes everything from the actions and feelings of the individual characters to pertinent background information and personal histories

point of view The point of view is third person omniscient.

tone The narrator delivers the story in a dry, almost clinical tone, relating the events that transpire almost as if they are evidence being presented in a trial.

tense Past tense

setting (time) 1990

setting (place) Primarily Costa Rica and Isla Nublar, a small island off of Costa Rica; several scenes take place in various locations across the United States

protagonist Primarily Grant, though certain scenes focus on the events that befall Tim

major conflict Though Malcolm and others repeatedly warn Hammond that the park is unsafe, his combination of greed and obsessive vision cause him to refuse to close the park; when the power shuts down, the dinosaur run loose and try to hunt down their creators and former captors

rising action Nedry jams the computer system, which shuts down the security system, deactivates the electric fences, and stalls the automated touring cars

climax The tyrannosaurus, the largest dinosaur in the park, attacks the Land Rover in which Hammond's grandchildren are riding

falling action Regis and Malcolm run from their cars; Grant and the kids are forced to flee into the park; Arnold restores the computer network

themes The potential dangers of technology

motifs Similarities between birds and dinosaurs; chaos theory

symbols The hupia

foreshadowing The three-toed lizard that attacks Tina at the novel's opening has all of the descriptive features of a young velociraptor, the same species seen sneaking onto the supply ship

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