The End but Not Really
I can’t help but notice I have been consuming a lot of post-apocalyptic content recently. It started last summer when I started watching Adventure Time; which definitely has the most whimsical take on what life is like after apocalypse (except when it does delve into those heavier topics). From there I started watching the Fallout show when it came out earlier this year. I had played some of the games and gotten into Fallout lore videos recently, so it was nice to see how well the show captured the feeling of the games. On TikTok I started watching a animator named Luke Humphris recently who has a small series which covers the life of different people after the apocalypse. Similar to Adventure Time, the tone is more on the eccentric and fun side, but nonetheless has been entertaining. Lastly, my partner and I have recently started playing The Last of Us Part 1 since neither of us had played before. Although the major plot points have basically given away by now, I still find myself enjoying the game and immersed into the world. None of this viewing was intentional just coincidental.
Anyhow one thing I noticed while watching all of these were the ways in which nature was able to reclaim the land long after humans had disappeared. These worlds seem filled to the brim with overgrowth; infrastructure which one dominated the landscape has crumpled; and of course the almighty cars are left to rot. In a way it is very fitting to see the world that humans sculpted to their own needs and wants completely decay and be taken back by nature. Afterall, considering what humans have done to Earth, it is nice to think that some sort of retribution would occur. Now in reality, what the world would look like after apocalypse is anyone’s game. There is a possibility that said apocalypse also destroys most of the world itself, look no further than nuclear winter or gamma ray burst to see what that would look like.
My main question is how would humans continue to live if a majority of everything and everyone is dead? Would we even survive? I feel that if humans were to survive, so much would have to occur. We would have to create some sort of new governance, produce a sustainable food source, rebuild key infrastructure, assign roles to people, etc. Another point I would like to add is that humans might need to fundamentally change in order to survive. This could mean developing new mindsets and outlooks on the world to not make the same mistakes of past. This could also mean changing how they live their everyday life and creating new habits. Lastly (although there are many more points that could be discussed), would be the issue of record keeping. Humans would need to find a way to keep or salvage the collective knowledge that we have accumulated. There is so much that would be at stake in that regard, but unfortunately humans might be more occupied with trying to survive.
With all of this being said, I do not want to the world to end. I very much enjoy living life and experiencing all that there is to offer, despite the current state of the world. I would rather have a future similar to Star Trek than to Fallout, and I don’t think that is an unpopular opinion. I am also confident in the resilience of humans, as shown when our ancestors almost went extinct. I think that as long as there was a way, we would survive no matter what. We are not invincible, nor do I believe in miracles, but I think we could find a way even in overwhelming odds. And if we don’t survive, well at least some of what we created will.
