Abstract:

Works of fiction often depict epidemics and shed light on their catastrophic effects on the life of people. In some instances, the novelists set their novels a long time after the pandemics killed millions of people. They envision post-apocalyptic worlds with people who survive these disasters and endeavor to readjust themselves to the new environments. For people living in such chaotic times, like the contemporary COVID19 pandemic, these novels become emblematic of the author’s prophetic and cautionary visions. They identify with the events and the characters and their struggle to survive the ordeal. This research focuses on Jack London’s post-apocalyptic novel The Scarlet Plague as a reflection of his prophetic vision of a 21st century pandemic that depopulated the world and almost caused the extinction of the human race.

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