The futility of action is discussed at several intervals throughout The 5th Wave. Cassie says to herself, “Run=die. Stay=die” (58), as she lies under a car and waits for the sniper who shot her in the leg to finish what he started. She knows she has no choice in the matter, as the sniper—the Silencer—will be stronger and quicker than her now that she is wounded. She remains under the car for a long time, working through her options, eventually deciding to walk away and allow what is to happen to happen. Cassie couldn’t have known that the Silencer was in fact impressed with her courage and decided not to kill her.

Cassie thinks “Run=die. Stay=die” (113) again after seeing her father murdered and Camp Ashpit destroyed by an alien bomb. She recognizes that her father understood the soldiers were not there to help them and ensured she was armed because he wanted her to escape. His own hands were tied; he couldn’t run but staying would get him killed too. The massacre at Camp Ashpit illustrates the sheer scale of the Others’ power over the remaining human survivors.

Zombie (Ben Parish) finds himself in a position where “Run=die. Stay=die” (283) becomes an issue for him as well.