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Last and First Men / Last Men in London
Last & First Men: A Story of the Near & Far Future is a future history sf novel written in 1930 by British author Olaf Stapledon. A genre work of unprecedented scale, it describes history from the present onwards across two billion years & 18 distinct human species, of which our own is the most primitive. Its conception of history is based on the Hegelian dialectic, following a repetitive cycle with many varied civilizations rising from & descending back into savagery over millions of years, but it's also one of progress, as later civilizations rise to far greater heights than the 1st. The book anticipates the science of genetic engineering & is an early example of the fictional supermind; consciousness composed of telepathically-linked individuals. In 1932, he followed Last & First Men with the less acclaimed Last Men in London. His other great novel, Star Maker (1937), may also be considered a sequel, but is even more ambitious in scope, being a history of the entire universe.
Last Men in London (1932) is a sf novel by Stapledon. The narrator is the same member of the 18th & final human species who purportedly induced him to write Last & First Men. Last Men in London is the story of this being's exploration of the consciousness of a present-day Englishman named Paul, from childhood thru service with an ambulance crew in the WWI (mirroring Stapledon's own personal history) to adult life as a schoolteacher faced with a "submerged superman" in his class nicknamed Humpty. The inadequacies of Paul's character, the various dilemmas he has to face during his life & the occasional influence of the advanced being who shares his experiences, provide a semi-autobiographical platform on which to expound philosophical & moral beliefs.
Last Men in London (1932) is a sf novel by Stapledon. The narrator is the same member of the 18th & final human species who purportedly induced him to write Last & First Men. Last Men in London is the story of this being's exploration of the consciousness of a present-day Englishman named Paul, from childhood thru service with an ambulance crew in the WWI (mirroring Stapledon's own personal history) to adult life as a schoolteacher faced with a "submerged superman" in his class nicknamed Humpty. The inadequacies of Paul's character, the various dilemmas he has to face during his life & the occasional influence of the advanced being who shares his experiences, provide a semi-autobiographical platform on which to expound philosophical & moral beliefs.
605 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1932
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About the author
Olaf Stapledon
88Ìýbooks537ÌýfollowersExcerpted from
William Olaf Stapledon was a British philosopher and author of several influential works of science fiction.
Stapledon's writings directly influenced Arthur C. Clarke, Brian Aldiss, Stanisław Lem, C. S. Lewis and John Maynard Smith and indirectly influenced many others, contributing many ideas to the world of science fiction.
William Olaf Stapledon was a British philosopher and author of several influential works of science fiction.
Stapledon's writings directly influenced Arthur C. Clarke, Brian Aldiss, Stanisław Lem, C. S. Lewis and John Maynard Smith and indirectly influenced many others, contributing many ideas to the world of science fiction.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
December 5, 2008
Remarkable book, filled with enough ideas to generate hundreds of SF novels, which it probably has. Its obsession with racial consciousness and its insistence on psychoanalyzing entire civilizations feels dated, very 1930s, as the diction. Most of HG Wells reads like it could've been written last week, but Stapledon you have to imagine in a wool double-breasted suit, eating war time rations, and listening to the BBC on a wooden radio.
And the species of human pathology and catastrophe that he inflicts on his imaginary civilizations are too limited for a book with such a scope -- too much of the same, grand, Gibbon-like pattern of collapse in each chapter.
But for sheer weirdness, audacity, and scope, this one is still worth it.
And the species of human pathology and catastrophe that he inflicts on his imaginary civilizations are too limited for a book with such a scope -- too much of the same, grand, Gibbon-like pattern of collapse in each chapter.
But for sheer weirdness, audacity, and scope, this one is still worth it.
June 23, 2015
"one conviction now stood out with certainty in Paul's mind, namely, that over all the trivial and inconsistent purposes that kept the tribes of men in conflict with one another, there was one purpose which should be the supreme and inviolate purpose of all men today, namely to evoke in every extant human being the fullest possible aliveness, and to enable all men to work together harmoniously for the making of a nobbler, a more alive human nature" - page 557-58.
The following review is only for Last Men in London.
I approached the 'sequel' to Stapledon's Last and First Men with a great deal of apprehension. Previous comments I had read about Last Men in London lead me to believe that the last-men-communicating-with-the-first-men-device that had been integral and fully utilised in Last and First Men, was utilised here purely for the sake of providing Stapledon with space in which to voice his comments on the First World War and to connect those comments to his larger body of fictional work.
Indeed, while Last Men in London is very much Stapledon's pronouncement on the First World War, its progenitors and his personal experiences within it, thankfully, the book offers up so much more! Far from being a brief afterword to Last and First Men, Last Men in London is a work that is equal in its scope of ideas and its further fleshing out of the Last Men's world, culture and mentality. The novel's focus by no means brushes aside the last men, but rather makes them an essential symbiotic presence alongside the first men.
Last Men in London is not the sequel to Last and First Men, it is its essential companion piece.
Last Men in London takes the ideas of Last and First Men and applies them to the realities of the everyday lives of the first men. Using this focus Stapledon is able to demonstrate just how important the full fulfilment and ongoing longevity of the human race is to me, you and every other first man, woman and child.
Last Men in London is essential Stapledon.
The following review is only for Last Men in London.
I approached the 'sequel' to Stapledon's Last and First Men with a great deal of apprehension. Previous comments I had read about Last Men in London lead me to believe that the last-men-communicating-with-the-first-men-device that had been integral and fully utilised in Last and First Men, was utilised here purely for the sake of providing Stapledon with space in which to voice his comments on the First World War and to connect those comments to his larger body of fictional work.
Indeed, while Last Men in London is very much Stapledon's pronouncement on the First World War, its progenitors and his personal experiences within it, thankfully, the book offers up so much more! Far from being a brief afterword to Last and First Men, Last Men in London is a work that is equal in its scope of ideas and its further fleshing out of the Last Men's world, culture and mentality. The novel's focus by no means brushes aside the last men, but rather makes them an essential symbiotic presence alongside the first men.
Last Men in London is not the sequel to Last and First Men, it is its essential companion piece.
Last Men in London takes the ideas of Last and First Men and applies them to the realities of the everyday lives of the first men. Using this focus Stapledon is able to demonstrate just how important the full fulfilment and ongoing longevity of the human race is to me, you and every other first man, woman and child.
Last Men in London is essential Stapledon.
March 6, 2024
"Even though, in all his ages, he yearned to creep back into the warm close peace of the womb, he craved also to absorb into his blood the atmosphere of a wider world."
There's a lot of quotable existentialist/philosophical messages in this 2-for-1 #scifibook and they definitely do not read like typical scifi novels -- Last and First Men is a breathtaking grand scale journey of humankind's evolution through billions of years into the future, as told by godlike beings with a contemplative tone, often matter-of-fact and emotionally detached from some catastrophes that humans have faced. In Last Men in London these godlike beings go back to the 'past' and focus on an individual's life amid war in the early 20th century, similar to Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five, but without the sarcasm/humor/absurdism (detached contemplative tone continues). So, from feeling insignificant in the greater scheme of things in the first, to finding inner peace and coming to terms with that insignificance in the second. Not for everyone for sure due to the writing style and very dense concepts of human's place/purpose in the universe, and I find the second novel dry and less exciting (because it's more nuanced and 'down to earth' unlike the first, not scifi escapist enough lol), but has very important critiques about the Great War such as the pacifist hypocrisy of the Red Cross organization and collective survivors' guilt, among other unique glimpses on the Silent Generation ("...on the whole less trustworthy, less firm with themselves, less workmanlike, less rigorous in abstract thought, less fastidious in all spheres, more avid of pleasure, more prone to heartlessness, to brutality, to murder."). I am lightheartedly naming him the 'grandfather of cancel culture' lol as he pretty much criticized everyone in society e.g. the religious, scientists, philosophers etc.
There's a lot of quotable existentialist/philosophical messages in this 2-for-1 #scifibook and they definitely do not read like typical scifi novels -- Last and First Men is a breathtaking grand scale journey of humankind's evolution through billions of years into the future, as told by godlike beings with a contemplative tone, often matter-of-fact and emotionally detached from some catastrophes that humans have faced. In Last Men in London these godlike beings go back to the 'past' and focus on an individual's life amid war in the early 20th century, similar to Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five, but without the sarcasm/humor/absurdism (detached contemplative tone continues). So, from feeling insignificant in the greater scheme of things in the first, to finding inner peace and coming to terms with that insignificance in the second. Not for everyone for sure due to the writing style and very dense concepts of human's place/purpose in the universe, and I find the second novel dry and less exciting (because it's more nuanced and 'down to earth' unlike the first, not scifi escapist enough lol), but has very important critiques about the Great War such as the pacifist hypocrisy of the Red Cross organization and collective survivors' guilt, among other unique glimpses on the Silent Generation ("...on the whole less trustworthy, less firm with themselves, less workmanlike, less rigorous in abstract thought, less fastidious in all spheres, more avid of pleasure, more prone to heartlessness, to brutality, to murder."). I am lightheartedly naming him the 'grandfather of cancel culture' lol as he pretty much criticized everyone in society e.g. the religious, scientists, philosophers etc.
April 15, 2023
Only read last and first men so far and need a break before moving onto the London one (will update when I get around to finishing that too).
Should maybe be a 2 star because I almost didn't finish it because it went on a bit, but there were some great little gems interspersed in there. I think a lot of interest came from reading a sci-fi book written in the 30s before WWII and the moon landing and atomic devices. He acknowledges he isn't going for accuracy and will be laughed at by future generations (in a very interesting foreword that is very worth reading). Because of this, he's very focused on biological and gas warfare, the most advanced civilisation he writes about is the only one to ever leave earth's atmosphere and they still use tiny film rolls to record their information (even if a very large amount of it).
I think the best moments come from descriptions of science or metaphysical things, or a mixture of the two, without any real hook in reality. And honestly the last section, the last of the last men really made it. This infinite struggle to survive despite knowing it's likely futility, at the expense of everything no less... What's more human than that.
And the last man may be a sign that they weren't as unsuccessful as the communicator may think.
I finished reading perfectly just as my song faded out, it felt kinda profound ngl...
Should maybe be a 2 star because I almost didn't finish it because it went on a bit, but there were some great little gems interspersed in there. I think a lot of interest came from reading a sci-fi book written in the 30s before WWII and the moon landing and atomic devices. He acknowledges he isn't going for accuracy and will be laughed at by future generations (in a very interesting foreword that is very worth reading). Because of this, he's very focused on biological and gas warfare, the most advanced civilisation he writes about is the only one to ever leave earth's atmosphere and they still use tiny film rolls to record their information (even if a very large amount of it).
I think the best moments come from descriptions of science or metaphysical things, or a mixture of the two, without any real hook in reality. And honestly the last section, the last of the last men really made it. This infinite struggle to survive despite knowing it's likely futility, at the expense of everything no less... What's more human than that.
And the last man may be a sign that they weren't as unsuccessful as the communicator may think.
I finished reading perfectly just as my song faded out, it felt kinda profound ngl...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 26, 2025
Both books are very entertaining, albeit dense and repetitive. I'd only recommend these if you loved Star Maker and want to read more grandiose, 2-billion year timeline Stapledon.
January 1, 2013
Originally published on my blog and in October 2001.
Last and First Men
Stapledon's classic novel purports to be a history of the human race from the thirties to the time when the destruction of the solar system and the species' end are near, as written by someone acting as a kind of medium for one of the last generation. It describes events on an epic scale, as catastrophes wipe out civilisation after civilisation, only for human culture to rise again (and for the human form to evolve).
Covering hundreds of millions of years, there is little space in this novel for individual characters, and this limits the appeal of Last and First Men. Women are almost completely ignored, given just about no role other than motherhood and only one being mentioned individually, and this is also potentially off-putting to modern readers. There are some dull or repetitious passages, though in the end the story is gripping enough.
Last Men in London
Stapledon's second book about the last generation of humanity is not a sequel to First and Last Men, which was a history of the human race from the 1930s across millions of years to the end, when the solar system is destroyed. What it is instead is a companion piece, describing the thoughts of the Last Men on the history of the early twentieth century.
The epic sweep of the earlier novel is replaced by human interest. The narrator from the future targets one man for his investigations, chosen for his sensitivity. Paul is observed (from inside his mind) and influenced from hie early childhood in the 1890s, though to his participation in the First World War, which is seen as the pivotal event which makes the eventual downfall of our civilisation inevitable.
As a novel, the human scale of Last Men in London makes it more immediately appealing than its predecessor. The device of showing the view that the Last Men take of contemporary society allows Stapledon to include parallels and commentary not normally accessible to the novelist writing about a time close to the date of composition; this does not always work (the story of the gentle lemurs is frankly silly), but can produce interesting effects. The best use of this is the major parallel between the Great War and the catastrophe foreseen in the last days of the human race, but the transfer of early twentieth century sexual taboos to a later culture's attitude to eating is also effective.
The purpose of Last Men in London is clearly to express a critical view of thirities culture; from a science fiction point of view, the problem with it is that the criticism is very much that of the intelligentsia of the time, as parodied, for example, in several (among others). A lot of it reads like sub-, without Huxley's own insight and unwillingness to just accept a fashionable idea. So Lost Men in London is easier to relate to than Last and First Men, but ultimately has less to say.
Last and First Men
Stapledon's classic novel purports to be a history of the human race from the thirties to the time when the destruction of the solar system and the species' end are near, as written by someone acting as a kind of medium for one of the last generation. It describes events on an epic scale, as catastrophes wipe out civilisation after civilisation, only for human culture to rise again (and for the human form to evolve).
Covering hundreds of millions of years, there is little space in this novel for individual characters, and this limits the appeal of Last and First Men. Women are almost completely ignored, given just about no role other than motherhood and only one being mentioned individually, and this is also potentially off-putting to modern readers. There are some dull or repetitious passages, though in the end the story is gripping enough.
Last Men in London
Stapledon's second book about the last generation of humanity is not a sequel to First and Last Men, which was a history of the human race from the 1930s across millions of years to the end, when the solar system is destroyed. What it is instead is a companion piece, describing the thoughts of the Last Men on the history of the early twentieth century.
The epic sweep of the earlier novel is replaced by human interest. The narrator from the future targets one man for his investigations, chosen for his sensitivity. Paul is observed (from inside his mind) and influenced from hie early childhood in the 1890s, though to his participation in the First World War, which is seen as the pivotal event which makes the eventual downfall of our civilisation inevitable.
As a novel, the human scale of Last Men in London makes it more immediately appealing than its predecessor. The device of showing the view that the Last Men take of contemporary society allows Stapledon to include parallels and commentary not normally accessible to the novelist writing about a time close to the date of composition; this does not always work (the story of the gentle lemurs is frankly silly), but can produce interesting effects. The best use of this is the major parallel between the Great War and the catastrophe foreseen in the last days of the human race, but the transfer of early twentieth century sexual taboos to a later culture's attitude to eating is also effective.
The purpose of Last Men in London is clearly to express a critical view of thirities culture; from a science fiction point of view, the problem with it is that the criticism is very much that of the intelligentsia of the time, as parodied, for example, in several (among others). A lot of it reads like sub-, without Huxley's own insight and unwillingness to just accept a fashionable idea. So Lost Men in London is easier to relate to than Last and First Men, but ultimately has less to say.
January 7, 2012
Ok, this was more an appreciate than a like, but I really did enjoy the concepts...it was just the experience of reading that was the problem. I was assigned this and the Starmaker (in one combo volume) at the same time in a science fiction class, and these two books were the only ones that felt like homework. I kept dashing the book away from me, cursing the author. But I finished it and the other one and enjoyed talking about it later. So say it was an adventure!
March 12, 2012
I may have reviewed one or both of these extraordinary science fiction novels earlier under their separate covers and may in fact have read one of them as a stand-alone novel before acquiring this dual edition. Whatever the case, while I admire Stapledon for his ambition, I found his most far-reaching novels difficult to stick with, the human element being so distant, the canvas being so large. Far preferable to me was his Sirius, the protagonist of which is a dog.
February 7, 2021
Quite remarkable for an author to have the balls to try to write the complete future-history of humanity, through our evolution into various other species; even more remarkable that he pretty much pulls it off.
The sheer scope of imagination is hard to put into words, so I won't try, I can only recommend giving it a go. It can be tough going at times, but your efforts will be rewarded.
The sheer scope of imagination is hard to put into words, so I won't try, I can only recommend giving it a go. It can be tough going at times, but your efforts will be rewarded.
August 30, 2014
Beautiful. Intelligent. Dystopic. Philosophical. Cynical. Cyclical. Wonderfully written and always worth a read.
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