'Ape and Essence' by Aldous Huxley is a dystopian novel set in a post-World War III era where nuclear war has devastated the world, leaving only a few survivors in Southern California and New Zealand. The story is presented in the form of a screenplay found by two movie makers, detailing an expedition from New Zealand to the California coast to investigate the aftermath of the war. The narrative explores themes of human progress, the consequences of destructive actions, and the devolution of society into a barbarous state.
The book delves into a satirical and cinematic portrayal of a future world plagued by nuclear fallout, mutated offspring, and a society worshipping a devil-like figure named Belial. Through the unique narrative structure and thought-provoking storytelling, 'Ape and Essence' offers a critical commentary on human nature, societal norms, and the potential consequences of technological advancements gone awry.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Triggers include themes of nuclear war, societal collapse, violence, and misogyny.
Has Romance?
While romance plays a role, it is secondary to the philosophical themes and dystopian critique.
From The Publisher:
A dystopian classic
In February 2108, the New Zealand Rediscovery Expedition reaches California at last. It is over a century since the world was devastated by nuclear war, but the blight of radioactivity and disease still gnaws away at the survivors. The expedition expects to find physical destruction but they are quite unprepared for the moral degradation they meet. Ape and Essence is Huxley's vision of the ruin of humanity, told with all his knowledge and imaginative genius.
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About the Author:
Aldous Huxley was born on 26 July 1894 near Godalming, Surrey. He began writing poetry and short stories in his early 20s, but it was his first novel, Crome Yellow (1921), which established his literary reputation. This was swiftly followed by Antic Hay (1923), Those Barren Leaves (1925) and Point Counter Point (1928) - bright, brilliant satires in which Huxley wittily but ruthlessly passed judgement on the shortcomings of contemporary society. For most of the 1920s Huxley lived in Italy and an account of his experiences there can be found in Along the Road (1925). The great novels of ideas, including his most famous work Brave New World (published in 1932, this warned against the dehumanising aspects of scientific and material 'progress') and the pacifist novel Eyeless in Gaza (1936) were accompanied by a series of wise and brilliant essays, collected in volume form under titles such as Music at Night (1931) and Ends and Means (1937). In 1937, at the height of his fame, Huxley left Europe to live in California, working for a time as a screenwriter in Hollywood. As the West braced itself for war, Huxley came increasingly to believe that the key to solving the world's problems lay in changing the individual through mystical enlightenment. The exploration of the inner life through mysticism and hallucinogenic drugs was to dominate his work for the rest of his life. His beliefs found expression in both fiction (Time Must Have a Stop,1944, and Island, 1962) and non-fiction (The Perennial Philosophy, 1945; Grey Eminence, 1941; and the account of his first mescaline experience, The Doors of Perception, 1954). Huxley died in California on 22 November 1963.
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