What attracts us to apocalyptic fiction?

raccoon

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Fri Aug-24-07 08:57 AM
Original message

What attracts us to apocalyptic fiction?

My favorites were EARTH ABIDES by George R. Stewart and ALAS BABYLON by Pat Frank.

I've always been a loner, and I wonder if there's a connection.

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bikebloke

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Fri Aug-24-07 09:24 AM
Response to Original message

1. Used to read them all the time.

There used to be a spate of them in the 70's. Lately, there have been two literary apocalyptic works - The Road by Cormac McCarthy and The Pesthouse by Jim Crace.

Though I think the attraction of relating to these types of books is putting yourself in the shoes of the few survivors. And to get somewhat analytic, perhaps its a subconscious desire to wipe the slate clean and start anew.

Or maybe it's just escapist adventure.

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raccoon

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Fri Aug-24-07 09:40 AM
Response to Reply #1

3. I'm not familiar with those two. I'll check into them. nt

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swag

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Fri Aug-24-07 09:25 AM
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2. The blood coming out of the eye sockets hooks me every time.

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unpossibles

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Fri Aug-24-07 10:55 AM
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4. I love it.

the survivalist pack rat scrounger in me likes reading (and watching in movies) how people cope with trying to resort to some semblance of life/civilization. I think it appeals to me as a way of showing both the triumphs and folly of people - how we can think we're so smart and on top of the food chain, but fail to realize (until the zombie Apocalypse, of course) that we rely heavily on a vast interconnected web of people who all share their skills.

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DarkTirade

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Sat Aug-25-07 03:57 AM
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5. I was actually working on an idea of my own...

post-apocalyptic future, few people left, ect. ect. It was going to follow the journey of one regular guy who ended up crossing half the country, and eventually becoming a great leader.

Then I realized stories need more than one main character to be interesting, so I put it on the back burner until I can come up with a few more. :)

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ruiner4u

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Sat Aug-25-07 03:59 AM
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6. alas babylon was awesome....

i think we read things like that to have some hope for our present day situations..

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raccoon

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Sat Aug-25-07 09:06 AM
Response to Reply #6

8. What attracts me about it now is the way many of the main characters

had much more of a sense of purpose in their lives after the nuclear war.

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ruiner4u

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Sat Aug-25-07 04:06 AM
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7. also there was the movie, the day after...

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Fire Walk With Me

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Sat Aug-25-07 12:11 PM
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9. Thanotos.

Just like Elvis, there's a little bit of it in every one of us. Excepting Michael J. Fox.

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MorningGlow

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Sat Aug-25-07 12:17 PM
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10. I think it's the ultimate drama

You can have life-or-death situations in all kinds of novels and movies, but as long as the characters are operating within the boundaries of the world we know, we can be more confident that they will come out all right. But an apocalyptic scenario yanks the rug out from under our societal conventions, "upping the stakes" of the bid for survival.

Either that, or we just like to scare the bejeezus out of ourselves.

:hi:

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Connonym

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Sat Aug-25-07 12:22 PM
Response to Reply #10

11. I think there's also an element of American pioneer spirit involved

I don't know if the fascination crosses to other countries or if it's uniquely American but we have a lot of frontier mentality in our American ethics. I think that it appeals to that aspect of the American psyche.

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MorningGlow

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Sat Aug-25-07 12:28 PM
Response to Reply #11

12. Starting fresh? And succeeding in a harsh, unfamiliar environment?

That makes sense! :hi:

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Connonym

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Sat Aug-25-07 12:53 PM
Response to Reply #12

13. yeah, making it "on your own"

we're really all about that aren't we? LOL, almost like a toddler insisting upon independence. I've never lived in another country but I've always felt that spirit of "can do" pull yourself up by the bootstraps thing was deeply ingrained in our way of life. I personally think that in a lot of ways we hurt ourselves with that attitude and my personal philosophy is that being human is about helping one another and standing together, not standing alone. It's what makes me a pinko leftist I guess. I think the US is especially guilty of intolerance of personal weakness and we need more compassion and more solidarity.

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bridgit

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Sat Aug-25-07 01:11 PM
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14. what is wistfully hoped to be the schadenfreude producing effect upon others...

:nuke:

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