The Compound

The pond at the back of the compound is a motif related to the novel’s thematic interest in The Insidious Nature of Reality Television. The changing state of the pond reflects the residents’ lack of control and foreshadows their descent into violence. When Lily and the other residents arrive, the pond is “beautiful” with “sweet smelling flowers growing toward the water” and a vibrant community of fish swimming like “glints of orange and gold flashing beneath the water” (59). The pond is a place of refuge for the residents, and Lily has personal conversations with Ryan and Sam there. However, the pond soon changes in accordance with the producers’ whims. When the producers are frustrated with the residents and decide to turn off the water, they drain the pond entirely. Lily is disturbed to find that “the fish that had lived there lay on the muddy ground, like nuggets of gold” (212). When the residents complete a task and banish Becca in exchange for water, the producers reward them by rehabilitating the pond so that it “[is] full, and new fish [swim] happily in its depths” (249). Such episodes demonstrate the producer’s complete control over the residents and their environment, underscoring the show’s twisted power dynamics.