Dated?
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Shelley's intense and acutely observed tale of love, war, and the ignominious fate of mankind is very much a novel of its time, with themes common in 19th century literature. The prose is elaborate, the descriptions vivid bordering on flamboyant, but her visionary predictions, portraying the plague that eventually topples civilization in a manner recalling the AIDS epidemic, are startling and remarkable, and conceivably an influence on the likes of Ballard, Matheson and Shiel. This supposedly dated novel of the apocalypse is a surprising, hugely enjoyable, and oft-overlooked gem from the birth of science fiction.
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A good concept, but it now seems dated and badly prejudiced
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This book was recommended to me as a well-written apocalyptic vision, a pre-cursor to modern science fiction, and so forth.
True, the central premise of the book is an interesting one and has some resonance with elements of life today such as Avian flu or AIDS. The first person narrative of Verney's character as the human race slowly vanishes around him, and the sway between Romanticism and pessismism, are at times harrowing and challenging. Unfortunately that alone does not redeem the novel's flaws.
The first 150 pages are almost completely irrelevant (both Shelley herself and Pamela Bickley acknowledge that it goes on a bit), and I honestly believe you could read the introduction to this book, and then start reading at page 150, and the only thing you would miss of any consequence are some snippets of Shelley's vision of a Republic-style English (not British) Empire, which is the only aspect of the novel's setting that is not stuck in 1830.
The novel is set at the end of the twenty-first century but apart from the Governmental differences mentioned above, there is no 'science fiction' or 'future prediction' involved- the world of "The Last Man" is the world of the 1820s with a few select adjustments. Crucially, and for me this was the most jarring part of reading this book, the writing is still mired in some deep-rooted prejudices that Shelley exhibits unforgivably. The characters, and the writing, are classist (the ruling class is still heriditary and the 'domestic' class are so unimportant that their deaths barely get a mention), racist (the negro who is implied to have brought the plague across the Channel), sexist, religiously prejudiced, and xenophobic. These traits are exhibited so often throughout the book that a modern-day reader should be appalled.
Of course as Shelley wrote this book after the death of her husband then her depictions of grief are in parts very moving, but the way in which central characters are clearly modelled on people from Shelley's life frankly gets in the way of the story-telling.
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Death and disease level all men
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This novel is a combination of a `roman à clefs' and science fiction, with gothic and autobiographic elements.
In her vision of the end of the 21st century, Mary Shelley sees the Greek occupying Istanbul and England as a republic with three political parties (royalists, democrats and aristocrats). The leader of the democrats deserts his responsibilities through fear of the plague, while the intention of the head of the aristocrats (a highly idealized portrait of P.B. Shelley) is `to diminish the power of the aristocracy to effect a greater equalization of wealth and privilege and to introduce a perfect system of republican government.'
Byron (Lord Raymond) is not in the same league: `Power was the aim of all his endeavors. The selected passion was ambition.'
Her vision of mankind is pessimistic: `There was but one good and one evil in the world - life and death.'
For life, `The choice is with us; let us will it and our habitation becomes a paradise.'
But, `What is there in our nature that is for ever urging us on towards pain and misery? We are not formed for enjoyment; disappointment is the never-failing pilot of our life's bark, and ruthlessly carries us to the shoals.'
`It is a strange fact, but incontestable, that the philanthropist, who ardent in his desire to do good, who disdains other argument than truth, has less influence over men's mind than he who refuses not to adopt any means, nor diffuse any falsehood for the advancement of his cause.'
Man doesn't control his destiny and the whole of mankind is wiped out by the plague. But, even on the verge of total destruction, false prophets preach intolerance with their `pernicious doctrines of election and special grace'.
This book is brilliantly written: `He was no longer bent to the ground, like an over-nursed flower of spring that, shooting up beyond its strength, is weighed down even by its own coronal of blossoms.'
It has a few minus points: slow progression, too idealized main characters and a rather too simplistic cause of the whole destruction of mankind.
But, it remains a real discovery and a very worth-while read, with an excellent introduction by Pamela Bickley.
Many novels have the plague as subject. I recommend highly `Bassompierre' by Hugo von Hofmannsthal.
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"The Last Man," the best of Mary Shelley's "other" works
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Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin Shelley published "The Last Man" in 1826, eight years after her classic "Frankenstein" and four years after her husband Percy Bysshe Shelley died. Of all of her other novels, "The Last Man" is clearly the one that is of more than passing interest. In her Journal in May of 1824 Shelley wrote: "The last man! Yes, I may well describe that solitary being's feelings, feeling myself as the last relic of a beloved race, my companions extinct before me." The result was one of the first novels to tell a story in which the human race is destroyed by pestilence, which we have seen in novels from Richard Matheson's "I Am Legend" and Stephen King's "The Stand," and films such as the recent "28 Days Later..." However, "The Last Man" is also an early example of a dystopian novel set in the 21st century when England is a republic being governed by a ruling elite. Adrian, Earl of Windsor (and a representation of Shelley's late husband) introduces the narrator of the tale, Lionel Verney, who is the required outsider to describe and comment upon the world of the future. Shelley's vision of the future is essentially a reaction against Romanticism and the failure of the movement to solve the problems of the world with art and imagination. This would stand in contrast to earlier English utopian works such as Francis Bacon's "The New Atlantis," which reflected the Age of Reason's belief that science would solve any and all problems. Shelley begins the story as a romance, with Lord Raymond (presumed to be modeled on Lord Byron) winning the hand of the lovely Perdita and being elected Protector. In contrast to the dire predictions of Thomas Malthus regarding unchecked population growth resulting in mass starvation, an ideal world seems to have been created. But then the plague breaks out in Constantinople and starts spreading. This plague is grounded more in fantasy than science, with Shelley clearly relying more on Boccaccio and Defoe, for her pandemic, which is not contagious (an interesting plot choice to be sure). The point of the plague is that it allows Shelley to show the best and the worst of human nature. When the demagogue Ryland abdicates being Lord Protector, the altruistic Adrian takes his place and makes an appeal for brotherhood, even as anarchy runs rampant in the streets and eventually the main characters are forced to flee England, which has strong parallels to the expulsion from Eden. This sets up the idea at the end of the novel that the last survivors might be able to establish an earthly paradise and rebuild the human race after the plague has disappeared. I was rather surprised that Shelley kills off her female characters because I had expectations that this would be more of a feminist work. Of course, this is because I remember who her mother was, but "The Last Man" is clearly concerned more with her late husband. "The Last Man" was probably Mary Shelley's least successful work during her lifetime, but today, which the interest in science fiction, as well as the real world threats of biological warfare and other weapons of mass destruction, this idea of how the world ends is quite pertinent. This is clearly her most important work after "Frankenstein," although obviously we are talking about a significant gap.
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Mary Shelleyýs Other Masterpiece
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"The Last Man" has always been completely overshadowed by the ever-present "Frankenstein" and as a result has been largely ignored by the reading public. This is a great loss as it is in some ways as great a work as its illustrious and much filmed and parodied predecessor.
"The Last Man" was written in the period following her husband Percy Shelley's death.
Set in the twenty-first century, it was enormously influential on the development of English science-fiction, particularly on HG Wells (see "The Time Machine", "The Island of Dr Moreau" and "The Invisible Man"), Olaf Stapledon and, less obviously, Arthur C Clarke (see "Childhood's End").
Central to the book's philosophical approach is a rejection of the romanticism of Lord Byron, whom she knew well, and her late husband. It blends astute political observation, a complex tale of doomed love and obvious portraits of PB Shelley and Byron into its subtle, melancholy mix. It is beautifully written and rewards both initial reading and, even more, re-reading. This Oxford edition is well documented with an excellent introduction. The cover picture is wonderful.
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