{"id":164,"date":"2026-09-01T18:19:28","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T16:19:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=164"},"modified":"2026-09-01T18:19:47","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T16:19:47","slug":"apocalyptic-sf","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=164","title":{"rendered":"Apocalyptic SF"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
\"Apocalypse\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In a way, stories about the\u00a0end of the world\u00a0are some of the oldest science fiction \/ fantasy stories available to mankind. But visions of the apocalypse have evolved from the Biblical and mythological, leaving behind the destruction of earth by a powerful God or gods. In later years authors have\u00a0mapped the pending doom onto more secular topics such as nuclear devastation, climate change or alien invasions. The essay establishes a map of the different discourses of apocalypse and then follows some of the more recent trends of apocalyptic science fiction, from Last Man literature (19th century) to genetic pandemics (21st century).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lecture<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This is the lecture \u201cApocalyptic SF\u201d by Prof. Dr. Allan Weiss (York University Toronto):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Videofile \u2013 MP4<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Weiss, Allan \u2013 \u201cApocalyptic SF\u201d<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Recommended Articles for Further Reading<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

THE ROAD TO SCIENCE FICTION, VOL. 1: FROM GILGAMESH TO WELLS<\/em> (ED. JAMES GUNN):<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Wells, H.G. \u201cThe Star\u201d (1897) \u2013 pages 339-348.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

The story tells of the events when a comet aimed directly at Earth is discovered. Apocalyptic in the sense that it deals with the consequences of Earth\u2019s imminent destruction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

THE ROAD TO SCIENCE FICTION, VOL. 2: FROM WELLS TO HEINLEIN<\/em> (ED. JAMES GUNN):<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Campbell, John W. \u201cTwilight\u201d (1934) \u2013 pages 259-76.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

A man drives through the desert and encounters a time traveller, who has seen the \u201ctwilight\u201d of mankind, where the race is slowly dying. Not the most apocalyptic of stories, but has some bearing on the topic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/h5>\n\n\n\n

WESLEYAN ANTHOLOGY OF SCIENCE FICTION<\/em> (ED. ARTHUR B. EVANS ET AL.):<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Wells, H.G. \u201cThe Star\u201d (1897) \u2013 pages 39-49<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

for this story, see above entry<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bradbury, Ray. \u201cThere Will Come Soft Rains\u201d (1950) \u2013 pages 234-40.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Part of his short story cycle The Martian Chronicles, this story employs the unusual perspective of a fully-automated house left standing long after a nuclear war has destroyed Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

ADDITIONAL READING (ASIDE FROM THE ANTHOLOGIES):<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Wells, H.G. \u201cThe Time Machine\u201d (1895) <\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Wells\u2019 novel is an excellent example of apocalyptic SF, describing in detail the end of humanity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Doctorow, Cory. \u201cWhen Sysadmins Ruled the Earth\u201d <\/h5>\n\n\n\n

In this story the world (i.e. the internet and electronic media) ends and only a few system administrators fight to keep civilization running. Funny take on the apocalypse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

McCarthy, Cormac. The Road<\/em>. New York: Knopf, 2006.  \/   Hillcoat, John (dir.) The Road<\/em>. 2009. Film<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Bleak novel (and its film adaptation) about a father and his son in a devastated, post-apocalyptic America. The story deals mostly with moral decisions that the two need to make when faced with survival. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

ADDITIONAL Media (to be considered):<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Marker, Chris (dir.) \u201cLa Jet\u00e9e\u201d. 1962. <\/h5>\n\n\n\n

This short film is the basis for Terry Gilliam\u2019s 12 Monkeys<\/em> and deals with a post-apocalyptic world after humans were (almost) wiped out by a virus. It is a black and white photo collage with narration \u2013 very experimental. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meyer, Nicolas (dir.) The Day After. 1983. TV film. <\/h5>\n\n\n\n

This is an ABC tv production dealing with nuclear war in the 1980s. Made in pseudo-documentary style it tells of nuclear apocalypse and the time after. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
MLA Citation for this page:<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Video Lecture:
Weiss, Allan. \u201cApocalyptic SF\u201d. Video Lecture.\u00a0A Virtual Introduction to Science Fiction<\/em>. Ed. Lars Schmeink.
Web. 2012. <http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=164>.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Essay:
Weiss, Allan. \u201cApocalyptic SF\u201d. A Virtual Introduction to Science Fiction<\/em>. Ed. Lars Schmeink.
Web. 2012. <http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=164>. 1-10.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Info Page:
Schmeink, Lars. \u201cApocalyptic SF\u201d. Web Page. A Virtual Introduction to Science Fiction<\/em>. Ed. Lars Schmeink. Web.
2012. <http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=164>.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In a way, stories about the\u00a0end of the world\u00a0are some of the oldest science fiction \/ fantasy stories available to mankind. But visions of the apocalypse have evolved from the Biblical and mythological, leaving behind the destruction of earth by a powerful God or gods. In later years authors have\u00a0mapped the pending doom onto more […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-164","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/164","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=164"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/164\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":169,"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/164\/revisions\/169"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=164"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}