In this chapter, the reader is introduced to a number of new characters, each of whom is a member of a different social class. The first person to enter the scene is a young woman who has just returned from a trip to the Galapagos. She is accompanied by her father-in-law, a scientist, and her uncle, an engineer. The scientist tells the young woman that the Galapagos have been deserted by the rest of the world for the past five years, and that the only way to recover is to go back to Eden. The young woman wonders why the northerners would want to return to their former home, and the scientist tells her that Eden was deserted five years ago by the people of the north, who had revolted against the government. He tells the woman that Eden is the only place in the world where she can go and join the scientific community, and she