1. By John Wyndham (some background…)
“The Chrysalids”
By John Wyndham
(some background…)

2. John Wyndham… Born in England
Likes to refer to his works as “logical fantasy” – used realistic settings in which sudden catastrophes (of a fantastic nature) occurred
Influenced by H. G. Wells and Jules Verne

3. Science Fiction
Narrative writing which is based on imaginary technological or scientific advances OR
Depends on an imaginary and spectacular change in the human environment

4. Common motifs include…
Invasion from outer space
Biological change or catastrophe
Time travel
Scientific developments and their possible outcomes
Destruction of the world as a result of its own technological advancements

5. Science Fiction….
Wyndham’s novel does not rely on strange inventions of technology or unfamiliar, futuristic settings
Story is set in a rural community called Waknuk in which an event called “Tribulation” occurred many years before (we are meant to understand this to be an atomic war that destroyed civilization as we know it

6. People of Waknuk only have a dim memory of Tribulation – view it as a time when humanity had to pay for its sins
Radiation contaminates the living world outside the small community – affects plant, animal and human life in the form of deformities – whenever any evidence of contamination occurs, the offending plant, animal, or person is removed from Waknuk

7. Some definitions…. Apocalypse….. Catastrophic destruction
The end of the world
Revelation of the end
Holocaust…
A case of large-scale destruction especially by fire or nuclear war