This presentation will look at a consistent theme in science (and perhaps other kinds of) fiction over the past century, beginning with the original King Kong film (1933) and continuing through to New York 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson (2017). We will examine a number of the reasons why different forms of disaster have befallen Manhattan, including bad luck, mega-monsters, The Bomb, crime, and climate change. It will include, among others, a Collier’s Magazine story about New York City as “Hiroshima, U. S. A.” published on the fifth anniversary of the dropping of the first atomic bomb, The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms (1953), various Godzilla films, Seven Days in May (1964), Escape From New York (1981), and The Warming: Speculative Fiction about the Human Impact of the Climate Crisis (2015).
Note: Because of a lack of time, not every attack on New York City will be covered.
About the presenterJonathan G Ripley
Dr. Jonathan Ripley is a Professor of Literature and Philosophy at Wentworth Institute of Technology. He has a Ph.D. in Modern American Literature from St. John’s University, a M.Ph.in Modern American Literature from St. John’s University; an M.A.in Modern British and American Literature from Adelphi University; and a B.A.in Philosophy from the University of Rochester.