Name: Adrian Ng Ho Yin
Student I.D.: 3035821594
Assignment #2
It was the year 2013 when the world came to an abrupt end for James Smith with the
Scarlet Plague ravaging Earth, killing the majority of humanity. The main bulk of the novel
follows James’s recollection of the immediate days following the outbreak, documenting his
experiences of not only the plague, but also the breakdown of civic order and the chaos that
ensued. As was made clear by James’s experience, if it wasn’t the plague that killed a person,
either because they never contracted the virus or that they were miraculously immune, the
chaos, the riots, and the senseless killings by those that were once civilized human beings in
acts of madness certainly finished what plague had started. And thus was the “end of the
world” scenario envisioned by Jack London in his 1912 short novel “The Scarlet Plague”, a
combination of a deadly virus and the subsequent disintegration of society, that reduced the
human population down to mere hundreds. An interesting point that London had raised was
that the plague itself was not necessarily the sole reason for the death of the human
civilization. After all, all viruses could do is the killing of humans, not the destruction of
human creations. Albeit it is the plague that kickstarted the disintegration of society, it is
nonetheless the riots and chaos that truly destroyed what was left of human civilization.
Quoting some lines from the novel, “The people remaining in the city, had gone mad from
fear and drink, and on all sides of him great fires were raging.” “San Francisco spouted
smoke and fire from a score of vast conflagrations that were like so many active volcanos.
Oakland, San Leandro, Haywards – all were burning; and to the northward, clear to Point
Richmond, other fires were at work……Civilization was passing in a sheet of flame and a
breath of death.” i “The Scarlet Plague” was thus a cautionary tale of not only the deadliness
of viruses, but also the danger and ease of humans losing their sense of civility, of the
destructiveness and violence of humans in the face of hopelessness.
The influences on London’s articulation of the “end” were apparent. Having just lived
through the two Bubonic plague that occurred in San Francisco, from 1900-1908, ii and the
San Francisco earthquake and the subsequent fire that burnt down over 25000 buildings in
three days, iii “The Scarlet Plague” was the manifestation of London’s fear that arises from
not only the plague, but also the uncontrollable fire of 1906, with the fire incorporated into
his novel as vast conflagrations incited by rioters. This novel is therefore particularly unique
in the sense that while London’s depiction of the virus, its elusiveness, its intangibility and its
deadliness certainly was masterful, he paid extra attention on the human’s reaction towards
the apocalypse, particularly the chaos and riots. It is unique because by addressing beyond
just the primary reason behind apocalyptic events, it allows us to better and more accurately
understand the popular culture and society in London’s time that shaped such depiction of the
“end”. It provides us with greater insight into our exploration of post-apocalyptic imaginary
that exceeded merely the primary threat, but also the human aspects in reaction to such
threats.
i
J. London, "The Scarlet Plague," Famous Fantastic Mysteries, 1912, 93-118.
ii
B. C. Campbell, Disasters, Accidents, and Crises in American History: a Reference Guide to the Nation's Most Catastrophic
Events (Facts On Files, 2008), 182.
iii
Ibid, 198.