Title: The Drowned World by J. G. Ballard
Publication Year: 1962
Plot: Set during the year 2145, the novel follows biologist Dr. Robert Kerans and his team of scientists as they confront a surreal cityscape populated by giant iguanas, albino alligators, and endless swarms of malarial insects. Nature has swallowed all but a few remnants of human civilization, and, slowly, Kerans and his companions are transformed—both physically and psychologically—by this prehistoric environment.
Miscellaneous: It has been identified as the founding text in the literary genre known as climate fiction, fiction that deals with climate change and global warming.
Trying to find a contemporary novel to weave Conrad’s work into took a bit longer than I anticipated. But when I read about Ballard’s The Drowned World, I thought I found a worthy partner. The novel depicts a future in which global warming has caused most of the earth to become uninhabitable. There’s a group of scientists who research ongoing environmental developments in a London that has been flooded and abandoned. When I was reading about it, I had an image of people on ships sailing through dark and murky territories, which certainly occurs in Heart of Darkness.
Anyway, let’s get to the discussion. Up front, one reader loved it, one really did not like it, and one was right in the middle. So we were set for a nice, rounded discussion. Initially, they jumped ahead to next week’s book, Robinson Crusoe. In Crusoe, nature was feared and something to be tamed. That was written in 1719. By the time the 1960s came around, we had national parks and nature was actively being preserved for appreciation and recreation. It was not as scary as in previous generations. In Ballard’s novel, however, nature has really taken over and the humans are more devolved; they submit to nature, as society is no longer alluring or a serious alternative.
The readers liked the multiple characters, even if we don’t go in depth with them. But we talked about how we wanted even more description of the climate and environment. The book felt like it was written in the ’60s. One thing we all appreciated about the novel is that we were not bogged down with inventing new kinds of technology. Often times in science fiction, the author needs to introduce new tech, ideas, and things like that. Not here.
We talked a lot about genetic history/memory. What is passed down in our “genetic” memory i.e. survival instincts? There’s this aspect of the idea that once man is immersed in nature, the primal part of him starts to emerge and take over. Like in Heart of Darkness, the collapse of society draws these men towards nature, which in both cases, has lead to a craving for power, a digression in any kind of civilized advances that man made.
The characters in Drowned don’t seem to matter much, or at least their relationships don’t. The isolation of the individuals is what matters. Man alone in the natural world is what Ballard seems to be driving home. In Drowned, Kerans is a “terminal” patient, meaning that he accepts what is going to happen. He seems content to embrace the change and destruction. Crusoe is the opposite–he is never terminal, only hopeful and determined that his current situation will not be his end. But we’ll get tot Crusoe next week.
We briefly touched on the inversion the biblical Adam at the end of the novel. Drowned‘s Adam retreats into a jungle where the Biblical Adam retreats from the garden. The water and the planetariums seem to symbolize a womb, suggesting a rebirth for the earth, as well as some of the characters.
It was a lively discussion that led us into a lot of rewarding rabbit holes. Can’t wait to dive into the world of Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe next week.
Please feel free to share your thoughts on Ballard, his work, and anything else related in the comments!
I also try to provide some supplemental reading materials in the form of papers, essays, and Q&As. Here is an essay from 1997 by Patrick A. McCarthy on allusions in The Drowned World.
Until next time,
E.
You can purchase The Drowned World from these places: