Entertainment is a recurring idea. In Ron's futuristic society, watching a human sacrifice himself or herself on live television is considered entertainment. As Ron notes, "everybody watches it anyway. More than watch the Academy Awards. Eight to ten points more. A point is about thirteen million people these days, did you know that?" Ron is concerned only with the entertainment value of Kim's death and with the success of the television show that will broadcast it live. Kim's death itself is given little importance outside of the show.