Childhood's End

“Earth still possessed democracies, monarchies, benevolent dictatorships, communism, and capitalism. This was a source of great surprise to many simple souls who were quite convinced that theirs was the only possible way of life. Others believed that Karellen was merely waiting to introduce a system which would sweep away all existing forms of society, and so had not bothered with minor political reforms.”

The nature of utopia in the novel is not reliant on a specific form of government. This is also a foreshadowing of the literal dissolving of all governments, economics, and social systems on which humanity relies. When humanity ceases to exist, so too do their systems, as they are unnecessary for the next advent of evolution.

“The invaders had brought peace and prosperity to Earth—but who knew what the cost might be? History was not reassuring; even the most peaceable of contacts between races at very different cultural levels had often resulted in the obliteration of the more backward society. Nations, as well as individuals, could lose their spirit when confronted by a challenge which they could not meet. And the civilization of the overlords, veiled in mystery though it might be, was the greatest challenge man had ever faced.”

This rhetorical question illuminates a major conflict explored in the text—The Cost of Utopia is not a violent conflict as history suggests. Instead, the Overlords represent the loss of struggle, which leads to the loss of inspiration, and eventually the literal end of the world. The placement of “peace and prosperity” in relation to “cost” directly connects the utopic vision of the world with the world’s eventual end.

“What he had refused to do under duress, he might yet attempt of his own free will.”

This passage suggests people can be malleable when given freedom of thought, but when faced with violence or force, they are more likely to refuse, as Stormgren refuses to betray Karellen when the Freedom League extremists try to force him to do so. This is also echoed in the occupation of the Overlords—they invade and take over not by the use of physical force but by intellectual superiority.

“There were some things that only time could cure. Evil men could be destroyed, but nothing could be done with good men who were deluded.”

One of the novel’s central themes revolves around whether the Overlords are good or evil, especially considering their devilish appearance. The passage suggests that perhaps a deluded goodness is more dangerous than evil—and therefore whether the Overlords are good or evil is inconsequential.

“Yet there could have been fewer still, anywhere in the world, who did not feel the ancient terror brush for one awful instant against their minds before reason banished it forever.”

The Overlords’ appearance matches ancient religious depictions of devils or demons, which the Overlords explain as a premonition: Ancient people knew on an unconscious level that these beings would bring about the end of humanity, and thus they associated them with evil and fear. This resemblance is a key symbol of The Relationship Between Science and Mysticism.

“Though Karellen was often asked to express his views on religion, all that he would say was that a man’s beliefs were his own affair, so long as they did not interfere with the liberty of others.”

A major theme in the novel is the tension between faith and science. Karellen’s decision to allow individual freedom in religious choice suggests that so long as religion is kept from justifying violence, it isn’t threatening to peace, prosperity, or the ultimate success of scientific endeavors.

“Beneath the fierce and passionless light of truth, faiths that had sustained millions for twice a thousand years vanished like morning dew.”

The tension between religion and science appears resolved. The implied argument is that when there is sufficient technology, religion can be disproved and people can shift their faith from religion to science.

“When the Overlords had abolished war and hunger and disease, they had also abolished adventure.”

This is one of several hints toward The Cost of Utopia. Although the end of violence, want, and illness seems obviously a pure good, the novel raises the question of consequences. In this case, a major consequence is that without risk there is no true adventure.

“It was strange, Karellen thought, that so many human beings still seized every opportunity for primitive behavior.”

Karellen’s wonder at humans’ desire for struggle reflects a fundamental difference between the Overlords and humanity. Humanity thrives on struggle, and although that appears “primitive” to Karellen, it is the core principle that drives humans to be more—perhaps suggesting a reason that humans transform, while the Overlords stagnate.

“There were, of course, some drones, but the number of people sufficiently strong-willed to indulge in a life of complete idleness is much smaller than is generally supposed.”

The utopia described in the novel includes an answer to a major critique both of automation and communist economic systems. The fact that most people choose to work when all their necessities and most desires are met by automation reflects the novel’s positive attitude toward human nature.

“Even here in mid Pacific, far from the great estuaries that slowly swept the continents out to sea, that rain never ceased. It came from the storm-scarred flanks of the Andes, from the bodies of a billion living creatures, from the dust of meteors that had wandered through space for ages and had come at last to rest. Here in the eternal night, it was laying the foundations of the lands to be.”

The recurring symbol of the rain in the ocean represents the overarching connection in all matter. This passage connects the ocean to space and beyond, establishing a basis for the later transformation of humanity into the Overmind.

“‘Surely,’ protested the Herald Tribune, ‘there is a fundamental difference. We are accustomed to Science. On your world there are doubtless many things which we might not understand—but they wouldn’t seem magic to us.’”

This reporter’s assertion that the Overlords’ technology could not possibly be so advanced as to appear magical to humanity is the first connection in the novel between mysticism and science. This also connects this novel to Clarke’s third law of science fiction: The idea that “any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”

“It is a bitter thought, but you must face it. The planets you may one day possess. But the stars are not for Man.”

Karellen’s assertion that “the stars are not for Man” is repeated later in the novel and is the primary reason for Clarke’s disclaimer at the beginning of the novel. This is the justification for the Overlords’ ban on space travel and is a foreshadowing of the later tragedy of mankind—that their children will live among the stars, but mankind will die on Earth.

“We’ve no hostility towards the Overlords: we simply want to be left alone to go our own way. When they destroyed the old nations and the way of life man had known since the beginning of history, they swept away many good things with the bad. The world’s now placid, featureless, and culturally dead; nothing really new has been created since the Overlords came.”

The existence of New Athens demonstrates the individualist attitude toward the Overlords’ imposed utopia. In depriving humanity of struggle, the Overlords’ utopia carries a cost that becomes overwhelming for humans—a lack of wonder, beauty, and inspiration.

“Few artists thrive in solitude, and nothing is more stimulating than the conflict of minds with similar interests.”

The value of art is a minor theme that raises larger questions about individualism and utopia. Art is beautiful largely because it addresses and presents possible resolutions to conflict. Human beings, the novel argues, are inspired primarily by conflict, and the result is art, like the novel itself.

“George was not a person who thought deeply on such matters, yet sometimes it seemed to him that men were like children amusing themselves in some secluded playground, protected from the fierce realities of the outer world.”

This passage reflects The Tragedy of Parenthood and the connection between mankind and children. The Overlords have acted as a benevolent parent to mankind, just as humans protect their young before preparing them for adulthood. Similarly, mankind will advance to their next evolution because of the Overlords’ parenting.

“Everybody on this island has one ambition, which may be summed up very simply. It is to do something, however small it may be, better than anyone else.”

New Athens is a bastion of individual achievement. It has been established that humanity craves struggle and conflict. This passage shows that humans, even with all their problems solved by technology and external power, still seek individual purpose in existence.

“Only on that first night had his mind called out to Jean across whatever unknown gulfs sundered them. Now he went alone and fearless into the universe that was opening up before him.”

The Tragedy of Parenthood is largely that successful parenting leads to a child becoming independent and no longer needing the parent. As Jeff transforms to join with the Overmind, only in the first dream does he still need his mother. The transformation of humanity mirrors the transformation from child to adult: Jeff is neither afraid nor lonely after his mother’s initial reassurance, and thus he can pursue spaces beyond the imagination of his parents.

“‘Enjoy them while you may,’ answered Rashaverak gently. ‘They will not be yours for long.’ It was advice that might have been given to any parent in any age: but now it contained a threat with a terror it had never held before.”

Rashaverak’s advice clearly connects The Tragedy of Parenthood to the evolution of humanity described in the end of the novel. The absorption of human children into the consciousness of the Overmind is, on one level, a metaphor for the experience of raising a child and seeing that child advance beyond the parent.

“It was the end of all civilization, the end of all that men had striven for since the beginning of time. In the space of a few days, humanity had lost its future, for the heart of any race is destroyed, and its will to survive is utterly broken, when its children are taken from it.”

The novel’s conclusion underscores the deep philosophical and evolutionary connection to children and the state of childhood. Although the Overlords argue this is the next evolutionary step for mankind, and they view it as a triumph, the loss of the wonder and possibility contained in children ultimately destroys humanity and the human spirit.

“For what you have brought into the world may be utterly alien, it may share none of your desires or hopes, it may look upon your greatest achievements as childish toys—yet it is something wonderful, and you will have created it.”

Karellen’s speech presents an alternative to the bleak picture of the humankind’s destruction. The wording also conveys another element of The Tragedy of Parenthood—that the children will surpass the parents.

“Anything completely unexpected is frightening. Until a novel situation is analyzed, it is safest to assume the worst.”

A primary difference between the Overlords and humans is humanity’s depth of emotion. The Overlords are often surprised by the intensity of human emotion—in this case, Jan’s sudden fear of the unknown. The passage also suggests that although the humanity’s destruction initially appears to be a disaster, that can’t be certain until fully analyzed.

“For the road to the stars was a road that forked in two directions, and neither led to a goal that took any account of human hopes or fears.”

Jan realizes that Karellen is right that “the stars are not for man,” reinforcing the novel’s central conflict. Human beings are primed for absorption into the Overmind because of their innate ability to feel and believe. However, this ability is also what prevents humanity from exploring the stars, as their emotions have no place in that uncharted wilderness.