Why the apocalypse?

Stories are often used to explore what could be, good and bad. Utopian and dystopian literature especially. Take for example William Golding’s “Lord of the flies” – and tale about what happens to our society as soon as authority is removed. Or Orwell’s “1984” (1948) and Huxley’s “Brave New World” (1932), both consider what the author felt the most pressing threats to their way of life were.

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However, apocalypses aren’t stories. Utopian literature – taking its name from Utopia, meaning ‘Not Place’ – and dystopia; a subgenre of utopia, are by nature fictitious. Apocalypses are not. They are actual events that happen.

They are the “reorganisation of society and sensibility” – John McMorrough.

 

Not the end of the world. Just the end of the world as we know it.

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In this vein I chose to research a few apocalyptic options and choose one that I found most interesting. I settled on Artificial Intelligence.