Apocalypse and Post-Politics: The Romance of the End

Manjikian (Regent Univ.) aims to show that apocalyptic literature can have a beneficial political impact. While she distinguishes among catastrophic, utopian, and apocalyptic works, which have a conservative, liberal, and critical intention respectively, Manjikian clearly favors the latter. Apocalyptic writing done well is subversive in a good way; it can show the powerful what they are doing to the powerless and change their perception of the world. Manjikian’s hope is that this literature could lead to a more harmonious world, especially in the realm of international relations. Manjikian provides strong evidence for the political power of words, and hers is an exemplary work on how to apply literary theory to the study of international politics. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduate, graduate, and research collections.

Manjikian reads catastrophe fiction as a symptom of how great powers fear loss of status, and treats it as an arena for practicing humility. A timely analysis of a sub-genre of timely warnings to post-9/11 America.