Science Fiction

The Drowned World

The Drowned World

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  • Create Date：2021-04-13 13:56:20
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：J.G. Ballard
  • ISBN：0007221835
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Summary

This fast-paced narrative by the author of Crash and Empire of the Sun is a stunning evocation of a flooded， tropical London of the near future and a foray into the workings of the unconscious mind。

Ballard imagines a future world in which global warming has melted the ice-caps and primordial jungles and swamps have returned to a tropical London。 As various members of an expedition to the city busy themselves with more or less futile schemes like draining Leicester Square in hope of loot， the central character Kerans moves to a strange acceptance of and assimilation by this lushly transformed world， vanishing into a final epiphany of heat and light。

The Drowned World is a potent， sensual mood-piece - jewelled and unforgettable。

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Reviews

Patrick King ，

If you can get past the racist tropes （yes， I understand the connection to Conrad， I still think it could’ve been done without it） and the sometimes overly dense prose， you’ll find a pretty interesting read。 Hits all the good points of a good introspective sci-fi adventure， is sometimes a little too smart/on the nose， but has some real great chunks of prose。 Did make me real jealous that my grandkids will be able to absorb the collective unconscious of our prehistoric past when climate change re If you can get past the racist tropes （yes， I understand the connection to Conrad， I still think it could’ve been done without it） and the sometimes overly dense prose， you’ll find a pretty interesting read。 Hits all the good points of a good introspective sci-fi adventure， is sometimes a little too smart/on the nose， but has some real great chunks of prose。 Did make me real jealous that my grandkids will be able to absorb the collective unconscious of our prehistoric past when climate change really fucks the whole world right up！ This is my first Ballard， can see how I might enjoy a work by a more mature version of this author， will give him another shot。 。。。more

Francesca kikkatnt ，

Cosa Succederebbe se potessimo essere i testimoni del tanto temuto surriscaldamento globale？ Ballard ci da una sua versione che può essere tranquillamente all'altezza dei migliori film post apocalittici。La barriera contro le radiazioni solari si è così molto assottigliata da innescare uno spaventoso effetto serra e la temperatura del pianeta è salita di parecchio。 Di conseguenza le calotte polari si sono fuse， causando l’innalzamento del livello delle acque in tutto il mondo。 La popolazione è mi Cosa Succederebbe se potessimo essere i testimoni del tanto temuto surriscaldamento globale？ Ballard ci da una sua versione che può essere tranquillamente all'altezza dei migliori film post apocalittici。La barriera contro le radiazioni solari si è così molto assottigliata da innescare uno spaventoso effetto serra e la temperatura del pianeta è salita di parecchio。 Di conseguenza le calotte polari si sono fuse， causando l’innalzamento del livello delle acque in tutto il mondo。 La popolazione è migrata tutta ai Poli， uniche zone ormai veramente abitabili。Ed è in questa scenografia che l'autore cala i propri personaggi。 I rettili sono i padroni dei palazzi e orde di palombari esplorano edifici sommersi in cerca di tesori。Se dovessi racchiudere il mio pensiero in una sola riga direi: eccellente ambientazione ma mediocremente sviluppato。 I personaggi sono appena abbozzati， la storia è un lungo piano sequenza in cui c'è gente che fa cose in qualche posto。In più alcuni passi sono alquanto inverosimili。 Com'è possibile che， a distanza di anni dal fatto accaduto， si possano trovare ancora carburante per elicotteri （elicotteri？！？！？） creme per il sole e champagne。Purtroppo per me è un 2 stelle tirato。 。。。more

Kyle Spishock ，

This is one of the strangest and surreal books I’ve experienced。 It’s the kind of book you finish， probably never read again， would never recommend to anyone， but find oddly satisfying when you turn the last page。 J。G。 Ballard describes a post apocalyptic landscape ravaged by the after effects of global warming that has receded the oceans and steadily dried all bodies of water。 The protagonist Random witnesses the steady decline of humanity with muted indifference， often expressing masochistic p This is one of the strangest and surreal books I’ve experienced。 It’s the kind of book you finish， probably never read again， would never recommend to anyone， but find oddly satisfying when you turn the last page。 J。G。 Ballard describes a post apocalyptic landscape ravaged by the after effects of global warming that has receded the oceans and steadily dried all bodies of water。 The protagonist Random witnesses the steady decline of humanity with muted indifference， often expressing masochistic pleasure that society has collapsed into odd surrealism propagated by even stranger characters。 While living on a houseboat after divorce， Ransom soon realizes that the chaotic forces of the dying town are causing him to flee toward the coast。 He unintentionally gathers a band of refugees to his migration， only to find the beach is clogged with survivors warded off by an army presence。 A ten year period of sifting through the coastal sand eventually prompts Random to return home to an even stranger Mad Max influenced scene of deformed children， an evolved human in costume， and a flowery aristocrat attempting to control the reservoir of water。 It almost seems like Ballard made up the story while he continued to write。 It oddly works: The intensity of his characters and the detailed descriptions of an earth buried beneath sand dunes and dust storms kept me enthralled throughout the swift runtime。 。。。more

Kiel Mitchell ，

Meh， dropped at two thirds。 Only interest it provided was a look at the mutant thought species you get when crossing the ascendant/ing biological sciences of the 60's with the hangover of psychoanalysis。 "Species memory" looks a lot like the collective unconscious， albeit with （pseudo）scientific trappings。 Meh， dropped at two thirds。 Only interest it provided was a look at the mutant thought species you get when crossing the ascendant/ing biological sciences of the 60's with the hangover of psychoanalysis。 "Species memory" looks a lot like the collective unconscious， albeit with （pseudo）scientific trappings。 。。。more

Carlos Freitas ，

A escrita se destaca nas descrições imaginativas e evocativas。 Enxerga-se com clareza esse mundo pós-apocalíptico extremamente quente， úmido， orgânico e no qual tudo parece estar num constante processo de crescimento sufocante ou de putrefação。Todo o conceito de regressão para uma psicologia ancestral é demais （o capítulo Towards a new psychology é um dos meus preferidos）。Um ponto negativo é que na parte "Coração das Trevas" da história o autor parece não ter aprendido com os problemas da obra q A escrita se destaca nas descrições imaginativas e evocativas。 Enxerga-se com clareza esse mundo pós-apocalíptico extremamente quente， úmido， orgânico e no qual tudo parece estar num constante processo de crescimento sufocante ou de putrefação。Todo o conceito de regressão para uma psicologia ancestral é demais （o capítulo Towards a new psychology é um dos meus preferidos）。Um ponto negativo é que na parte "Coração das Trevas" da história o autor parece não ter aprendido com os problemas da obra que lhe serviu de inspiração e descamba para caracterizações racistas/colonialistas。 。。。more

Andrea ，

Generally underwhelmed。 It seemed like there was something interesting with the plot and the descent into madness but then I got distracted by the authors shallow writing of the one woman in the story and racist caricatures。 It was written in 1960 so im trying to place it in the time it was written， but in the end I wish I had just spent my time reading something else。

Kaia Dresselhaus ，

As a huge fan of eco-horror and psychological sci-fi， I felt disappointed with this book， considering the intriguing premise and the hype around it and J。G。 Ballard。 The prose is lush and descriptive but extremely repetitive， almost to the point where I didn't understand what was even happening with the plot。 I'm sure some would say that my Gen Z mind just doesn't understand the genius of this 1962 book， but it was really dry and jargon-y， even for someone versed in environmental science。Anothe As a huge fan of eco-horror and psychological sci-fi， I felt disappointed with this book， considering the intriguing premise and the hype around it and J。G。 Ballard。 The prose is lush and descriptive but extremely repetitive， almost to the point where I didn't understand what was even happening with the plot。 I'm sure some would say that my Gen Z mind just doesn't understand the genius of this 1962 book， but it was really dry and jargon-y， even for someone versed in environmental science。Another thing that bothered me was that none of the characters are well-developed or even have any real defining traits; Kerans is a man。 Beatrice is a woman。 That's the extent of their personalities。 I didn't get what Strangman's deal was until he literally （view spoiler）[ had Kerans tied to a sacrificial pole （？？）， but then proceeded to pretend it never happened？ （hide spoiler）]I did like the ending， but it felt predictable as we knew Kerans' intentions from the beginning。 An odd and frustrating book。 。。。more

Kristen ，

Generally， I feel like I was sold false goods。 I thought I was purchasing early science fiction and “climate fiction” to quote the jacket blurbs。 I was actually purchasing thinly veiled， racist fear-mongering about the end of the British Empire and colonial rule。 In kinder moments than the book deserves， I could acknowledge a form of satire， self-mocking to an extent as to the reach of the “civilizing” capacity of the white man and recognition that， as the imperial state withdraws - and particul Generally， I feel like I was sold false goods。 I thought I was purchasing early science fiction and “climate fiction” to quote the jacket blurbs。 I was actually purchasing thinly veiled， racist fear-mongering about the end of the British Empire and colonial rule。 In kinder moments than the book deserves， I could acknowledge a form of satire， self-mocking to an extent as to the reach of the “civilizing” capacity of the white man and recognition that， as the imperial state withdraws - and particularly where it does so because it has been forced out by a rising tide or flood of opposition and therefore seeks not to shore up institutions as it goes but maybe even to undercut them - society in turmoil and accustomed to a predatory State may fall victim to rapacious men of privilege and some mean charisma。 The language used to describe people of color may be simply outdated， but the caricatures in which they are so roughly depicted are bluntly racist。 The only female character is a simple enigma， without agency at any moment in the story and only inertia and apathy as her defining characteristics。 Even the central characters’ opposition to the lingering of the imperial reach via proxy governorship or armed intervention， in favor of destroying the vestiges of empire and allowing the primordial state to regain its footing betrays outdated ideas of the lack of culture and civilisation before the period of Western dominance， which an author raised in Singapore and surely aware of the long historical records of Asian civilizations and governance should have been better able to reflect。 The book’s content is generally distressing， and the more so for an introduction dating to 2012 that does Martin Amis absolutely no favors in failing to acknowledge the political over- and undertones of the novel and taking it as simply one about fear of technology and the cumulating impact of the Homogenocene。 The only blurb that I see on Amazon and in the book’s covers （metaphorical given that ai read the ebook） that actually describes the content is a quote by Kingsley Amis that makes reference to the evocation of Conrad’s steaming jungles。。。 。。。more

Nore ，

Beautiful writing， painfully boring pacing。 I have a lot of other things to read so I'm dropping this。 Beautiful writing， painfully boring pacing。 I have a lot of other things to read so I'm dropping this。 。。。more

Conchi Rodríguez ，

Agridulce， gran atmósfera pero no ha sabido estar a la altura con los personajes。 No tiene final o al menos yo iba a pasar la página y se había acabado。 4 estrellas al ambiente，1 a la historia y personajes。

Zoe Blackburn ，

The book deals with ideas of HUMAN REGRESSION - a world slowly returning to the Triassic period where humans are no longer the apex predator。 Instead， reptiles such as iguanas and alligators dominateThe solar storms occurred such a long time ago that only a few people such as Bodkin can remember the old world， deals with the LONG TERM EFFECTS of an apocalypse like Children of MenFERTILITY has also hugely decreased， and only 1 in 10 marriages produces any offspring。The idea of ANCESTRAL MEMORY is The book deals with ideas of HUMAN REGRESSION - a world slowly returning to the Triassic period where humans are no longer the apex predator。 Instead， reptiles such as iguanas and alligators dominateThe solar storms occurred such a long time ago that only a few people such as Bodkin can remember the old world， deals with the LONG TERM EFFECTS of an apocalypse like Children of MenFERTILITY has also hugely decreased， and only 1 in 10 marriages produces any offspring。The idea of ANCESTRAL MEMORY is also explored， the idea that locked within our brains are archaic memories of the Triassic periodKerans is increasingly haunted by DREAMS of the Triassic sun which represent his repressed memory of the Triassic periodThe catastrophe of this dystopia is an ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTERRELIGIOUS IMAGERY such as Adam， Eve and the lost paradise represent starting again in the novel 。。。more

Bart ，

（。。。）So if you are after spaceships or an adventure romp， look elsewhere: this is about inner space instead of outer space， as Martin Amis notes in his excellent introduction。 The problem， however， is that for a novel that supposes to examine a certain psychology， Ballard’s hypothesis obviously is ludicrous。 So what is he examining here？ A mere speculative effect， that doesn’t offer much insight in the human condition， because it is totally unrealistic？ For a psychological novel， there’s not tha （。。。）So if you are after spaceships or an adventure romp， look elsewhere: this is about inner space instead of outer space， as Martin Amis notes in his excellent introduction。 The problem， however， is that for a novel that supposes to examine a certain psychology， Ballard’s hypothesis obviously is ludicrous。 So what is he examining here？ A mere speculative effect， that doesn’t offer much insight in the human condition， because it is totally unrealistic？ For a psychological novel， there’s not that much characterization， let alone character development， even though there are glimpses of brilliance on the matter。Paintings of Paul Delvaux and Dalí serve as props in the story， and they offer a way to get a better grip on what Ballard was trying to do， which is write a surrealist/symbolist novel。 The Drowned World shouldn’t be read for psychological realism， but rather for psychological symbolism – a tangent to the fact that what is psychologically real is not always the same as reality in this book。 Once I realized that， it seemed a pretty straightforward affair: a tale about regression， about the mere veneer of civilized society， and the heart of darkness underlying all。 It is as if Ballard’s nature imagery might serve as a simile for the human condition:"Beautiful and serene from his balcony a few minutes earlier， Kerans realised that the lagoon was nothing more than a garbage-filled swamp。"（。。。） but I don’t think there’s something like an irreducible primitive core that needs to be held in check。 The days of Freud are over – but who can blame Ballard for writing stuff like this in the sixties？ Besides， dichotomies remain ever popular today。（。。。）+ this review ends with a discussion of the alleged racism of The Drowned WorldMore on Weighing A Pig 。。。more

Maria Lucia ，

Ballard è un classico， ma non mi ha soddisfatto。 "il mondo sommerso" è interessantissimo nella trama e nei personaggi， nelle condizioni in cui vengono posti e la narrazione scorre liscia e senza intoppi。 Tuttavia， a livello di eventi， succede ben poco - solo nella seconda metà del libro si entra nel vivo。 Mi aspettavo di più， da amante del post-apocalittico， ma è solo una personale impressione。 Ballard è un classico， ma non mi ha soddisfatto。 "il mondo sommerso" è interessantissimo nella trama e nei personaggi， nelle condizioni in cui vengono posti e la narrazione scorre liscia e senza intoppi。 Tuttavia， a livello di eventi， succede ben poco - solo nella seconda metà del libro si entra nel vivo。 Mi aspettavo di più， da amante del post-apocalittico， ma è solo una personale impressione。 。。。more

Harriett Milnes ，

written in 1962， 58 years ago。 Presents a world （London） with all the buildings underwater， alligators and iguanas rule。 Some humans moving north。 Interesting。

Matthew ，

I read this book as a part of the 1，000 Books to Read Before you Die by James Mustich。I am a big fan of sci-fi and dystopian fiction。 However， this book just didn't do much for me。 I am not sure what the reason was but in a lot of ways I was just bored as I made my way through the story。 The concept is interesting in that mankind regresses in a sort of de-evolution as the planet returns to a pre-historic biological state。 I read this book as a part of the 1，000 Books to Read Before you Die by James Mustich。I am a big fan of sci-fi and dystopian fiction。 However， this book just didn't do much for me。 I am not sure what the reason was but in a lot of ways I was just bored as I made my way through the story。 The concept is interesting in that mankind regresses in a sort of de-evolution as the planet returns to a pre-historic biological state。 。。。more

Rowan Curtis ，

Racist， sexist and pretty bad。 Some nice prose though。

AV ，

reject aridity， return to iguana

Rod Sam ，

Pulgares Abajo。 La historia， por más que pareciera interesante， me pareció muy pobremente desarrollada。 Con personajes muy sencillos， El Mundo Sumergido， nunca alcanza una emotividad que te haga querer seguir; sino más bien， solo ganas de que termine。

Sarah ，

Plot en personages zijn niet zo boeiend， maar de wereld des te meer。 Ballard beschrijft wat de klimaatcrisis met je bewustzijn kan doen。 Maar is dit een post-apocalyptisch dystopia of utopie？

Maia Peacock ，

3。5*

Giacomo ，

Ho sudato moltissimo durante la lettura di questo libro e cominciato a sognare mostri preistorici e un sole gigante， svegliandomi spesso con un malessere paranoico。 Dite che mi è piaciuto？

Ed ，

The imagery of heat， light， foliage and mud in this book is very powerful。 This book shows its age in many ways but was certainly worth reading。 'Soft' sci-fi， here exploring psychology rather than social problems。 There is a rationale given for how the world has changed， but it is not investigating or describing that， and instead the book is devoted to understanding the re-emergence of prehistoric living conditions and primal human nature。The style was consistent with the character's perspectiv The imagery of heat， light， foliage and mud in this book is very powerful。 This book shows its age in many ways but was certainly worth reading。 'Soft' sci-fi， here exploring psychology rather than social problems。 There is a rationale given for how the world has changed， but it is not investigating or describing that， and instead the book is devoted to understanding the re-emergence of prehistoric living conditions and primal human nature。The style was consistent with the character's perspective and the setting was very beautifully described。 I enjoyed this very much， though not without reservations。 。。。more

Grey ，

Fairly interesting and early take on climate fiction。 Forced me to reconsider different conceptions of histories， human extinction。

m a l e n a ，

3。3⭐

A。J。 ，

Some say this book was a harbinger of man-made climate change crisis， but I really fail to see how since the extremely rapid climate change that occurred in it was a result of sun flares which could not be prevented and which simply must be endured。The imagery is fantastic， and is what drew me to it。 A mostly underwater London where the few people remaining live in the 'islands' of the top floors of what once were skyscrapers， jungle fauna everywhere approaching prehistoric sizes as well as rept Some say this book was a harbinger of man-made climate change crisis， but I really fail to see how since the extremely rapid climate change that occurred in it was a result of sun flares which could not be prevented and which simply must be endured。The imagery is fantastic， and is what drew me to it。 A mostly underwater London where the few people remaining live in the 'islands' of the top floors of what once were skyscrapers， jungle fauna everywhere approaching prehistoric sizes as well as reptiles， bats and the like all also having grown in size。However， after that things get silly。 I'm no expert on silt but the science of this sci-fi just seems absurd- the claim is that the melting of all the world's ice caused absolutely ginormous amounts of silt to drift around， ending up lodging in places creating little islands， channels or semi-enclosed lagoon areas （London is now made up of these lagoons）， which if you think about how high the water had to have risen from current levels， then the silt would have had to have built up gigantic underwater mountains in many， many places all in the course of some decades or a century or two。 Also， the geography is off because if we're led to believe London is underwater by about this amount， then there would still be sometimes larger earth （not building） islands around Britain which the novel never really specifies but acts as if the entirety of Great Britain （not to mention Europe and elsewhere） is sunk。Then right off I thought it was silly how the protagonist doesn't even know which city he's in。 Come on。 I remember something about the crisis happening 60 years ago mentioned， although I think the year is sometime in the 22nd century so perhaps it could've started over a century or more before， but regardless， even if most of the UK's surviving population were moved to Greenland （where the protagonist is from）， they would still be taught something about history， and if their military were still built up enough to send contingents out to explore the underwater cities of Europe for science and to round up stragglers， surely they'd be aware of which （former） city they were going to at any point in time。 This oft-mentioned point of being unaware of his current location's name lasts for about half the book before he's finally told by someone what the city is。Then there is the idea that despite only having 1950s/1960s-era or so technologies and even then that tech having to have survived for many decades so far in very humid and hot weather， the elevators still work in some buildings （by generator I think， but still） and they are able to rig up air conditioner units to apartments in the buildings， oh and someone who's never left was able to have a deep freezer still working。 I could imagine on the boats or helicopters they came from Greenland on， sure， but anything else just starts to get wonky。The silliest aspect though is that even though only 60 to a hundred or two at most years on from the crisis， things have already mutated to such a degree。 It just doesn't happen that fast。 Also， regularly people are venturing into （and some living without the air conditioned living quarters in） I think it was 130 or 150 degree Fahrenheit weather and simply 'sweating a lot' （and apologising to others for it。。。 how very English， or should I say Greenlandic）。 Did the author not do any research on what temperatures are survivable？ Once it is up to 110 it's almost unbearable for longer periods and 120 or above gets lethal quickly。 I suppose we could imagine the humans have adapted or mutated to survive the hotter temperatures but then it states their air con units keep their living quarters at a 'warm' 80 something which is very normal to what we without the crisis would feel。I might have ignored all that if the story were better but alas， it's something of a dud。 It's reminiscent of The Island of Dr。 Moreau and Heart of Darkness， but I would say does a disservice to both。 The first half is spent pottering about the city for the expedition， but then the expedition leaves and the protagonist decides to stay behind because of a prehistoric yearning that his lady friend who'd never even left the city in the first place also has， despite their food rations running low and the air con， electricity and other conveniences threatening to quit permanently any moment。 That's when things get darker since， and mild mid-book spoiler alert here， instead of them enjoying their 150 degree underwater city paradise alone， a white man from the south shows up in a large （I think it was a cruise？） boat with his black tribal-ish crew/mindless devotees and army horde of gigantic command-able alligators。This man is something of a scavenger/pirate， sailing around to all the random vestiges of a former civilisation， not doing much else than looking for salvageable art， precious metals and the like to add to the large collection on his boat。 Honestly， I feel like I'm making it sound more interesting than it is in the book， lol。 The description and idea are interesting， the execution not so much。He meets these London castaways and they strike up an uneasy acquaintanceship， of somewhat of a forced nature since the man seems possibly quite dangerous。 He decides to stay in London for awhile and search around for treasure and in the meantime they all have little meetings every so often or even little soirées。 Then for the latter half of the book things go from bad to worse。Despite all my other misgivings， the worst aspect of the book is probably its sexism and racism。 The sexism is somewhat forgivable looking at when it was written since it was more or less par for the course of the time。 The scientific/militaristic crew expedition from Greenland is all male， as is the boat from the south's crew。 The only female character just sits around and does nothing all the time。The racism though is not forgivable even considering the author's time。 The black people are depicted as subservient， primitive， less intelligent， etc。 etc。 They are basically just dimwitted tribal slaves doing the bidding of their master。 Inspiration seems to have obviously been drawn from the aforementioned Heart of Darkness， which has its own racism controversy， but this book has not the quality of that one， and it was written over half a century later。 The author really should have known better。Even if one thinks this is purposely using a colonial-era structure and mindset to make a point which I suppose might be possible， it still doesn't work and the racism is too far gone to be part of a skewering of racism。 In a roundabout way all this is slightly ironic in the fact that this author also wrote Crash which was adapted into a film， but is now overshadowed by the other （somewhat notorious） film and Best Picture Oscar winner named Crash which is all about racism。There are some very interesting aspects to this book， but unfortunately they're undone by a lacklustre story， silly science and racist imagery。 。。。more

V ，

I read The Drowned World by JG Ballard for my science fiction module at university， and honestly I would have DNF'd it if I have been reading it for myself。 The Drowned World is set in a future in which London is underwater。 As man-made climate change wasn't known about （as far as I'm aware） in the 1960s when this was first published， this isn't a result of climate change in the novel。 Though knowing what we know now， it could be read as a result of our actions。 The future The Drowned World depi I read The Drowned World by JG Ballard for my science fiction module at university， and honestly I would have DNF'd it if I have been reading it for myself。 The Drowned World is set in a future in which London is underwater。 As man-made climate change wasn't known about （as far as I'm aware） in the 1960s when this was first published， this isn't a result of climate change in the novel。 Though knowing what we know now， it could be read as a result of our actions。 The future The Drowned World depicts could easily be ours。 The story lets this really interesting concept down though。 We follow Kerans， a scientist who has come from Greenland as part of a scientific expedition to underwater London。 However， when this expedition leaves， Kerans decides to not go with them。 There's never really any explanation given as to why， just same vague conversations about primeval memories。 I didn't get it。 It made no sense to me， and I just got bored at the end。 I appreciate it for the way Ballard shook up the world of hard sincere fiction with ideas of the 'inner space' - psychological science fiction other than it being labour physics and engineering。 I might give another Ballard book a go in the future because of that。 。。。more

Minna ，

I could not finish this book because it’s so mind-numbing ly boring。 Terrible character development and half the text is describing water and “silt。” I expected more from this book from all the reviews。

Aeo ，

Tras un evento catastrófico solar la Tierra se ve inundada y la temperatura aumenta hasta el límite de lo tolerable。 Los pocos supervivientes sobreviven en las zonas polares junto con algunos pocos humanos dispersos por las antiguas ciudades saqueando lo que pueden。 La historia comienza con una misión científica para comprobar los efectos climáticos en la ciudad de Londres pero la narración pronto se centra en el desarrollo interior de los protagonistas: un viaje a la locura， al primitivismo irr Tras un evento catastrófico solar la Tierra se ve inundada y la temperatura aumenta hasta el límite de lo tolerable。 Los pocos supervivientes sobreviven en las zonas polares junto con algunos pocos humanos dispersos por las antiguas ciudades saqueando lo que pueden。 La historia comienza con una misión científica para comprobar los efectos climáticos en la ciudad de Londres pero la narración pronto se centra en el desarrollo interior de los protagonistas: un viaje a la locura， al primitivismo irracional que la jungla salvaje y los animales mutados que se han desarrollado tras la catástrofe provoca en las personas。 Un buen punto de vista que se aparta de la narración más tradicional postapocalíptica y se define más en el estilo Ballardiano， pero que no me ha terminado de calar。 La mayor fuerza narrativa la debería llevar esa involución interior del ser humano y creo que se pierde un poco en subtramas algo difusas perdiendo bastante fuerza。 Valorable desde el punto de vista iniciático de la New Wave pero posiblemente se disfrute más de otras novelas posteriores del autor。Una reseña algo más desarrollada en mi blog: https://pasionscifi。wordpress。com/202。。。 。。。more

Sarah :） ，

I just dont recall much of it。 Maybe me， maybe the writing。

Ben Truong ，

The Drowned World is a 1962 science fiction novel by British writer J。 G。 Ballard with an introduction by Martin Amis。 The novel depicts a post-apocalyptic future in which global warming has caused the majority of the Earth to become uninhabitable。 It follows a team of scientists researching ongoing environmental developments in a flooded， abandoned London。This book serves as an entry （Featuring the environment） in The 52 Book Challenge 2021。 This book has been on my TBR for a while now and was The Drowned World is a 1962 science fiction novel by British writer J。 G。 Ballard with an introduction by Martin Amis。 The novel depicts a post-apocalyptic future in which global warming has caused the majority of the Earth to become uninhabitable。 It follows a team of scientists researching ongoing environmental developments in a flooded， abandoned London。This book serves as an entry （Featuring the environment） in The 52 Book Challenge 2021。 This book has been on my TBR for a while now and was fortunately enough to remember it for this challenge。Post-apocalyptic in style， it is centered on Dr Robert Kerans – a biologist who is part of a team researching the ongoing changes in a flooded London。 Solar radiation flares have changed the Earth’s atmosphere， which melts the ice caps and creating a world which is mostly uninhabitable。 Vast swampy lagoons now form the landscape， with most of London far beneath the surface of the water and just the topmost floors of some buildings visible。Kerans lives in the Ritz of this inundated London， within a climate-controlled pod， whilst the once highly glamorous furnishings of this famous hotel rot and decay in the heat and humidity。 He is supposed to be monitoring the flora and fauna of the environment， but his urgency is gradually fading as he becomes more and more inward-looking。The scientific team are called back north to where most of the remaining population are now living but he， a reclusive woman called Beatrice Dahl who spends her time frozen in her once upper-class existence and fellow scientist Dr Bodkin refuse to leave and they settle in the lagoon as it regresses into the neo-Triassic period。The Drowned World is written rather well。 The powerful descriptive narrative is what holds the isolationist science-fiction theme of this novel up。 It is rich， eloquent， bold， and erudite – it is from a time where stories showed you what the world looked like， where the action was secondary to the belief。 As a piece of post-apocalyptic fiction this is a really interesting idea that a natural disaster brought about the global warming of the Earth， however it could also be treated as a cautionary tale of what could happen with humanity made warming of the Earth。All in all， The Drowned World is a wonderful classic post-apocalyptic novel about climate change and global warming and the possible future of not just the planet， but humanity as well。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Drowned World

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Drowned World&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Drowned World&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0