Armageddon and Utopia
Almost a decade ago two English writers, Paul Kingsnorth and Dougald Hine, published Uncivilisation: the Dark Mountain Manifesto, calling for a literary response to the βsocial, economic and ecological unravellingβ of our time. Surrounded by a nearly deafening silence about the now nearly (?) unavoidable collapse of civilization, this dissident voice seemed a pleasant diversion, and the idea to use literature and art to change the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves and our relation with the world around us is a very sympathetic idea as well. However, the Manifesto itself raised several red flags, and made it very clear...