Childhood's End

One of Arthur C. Clarke’s most famous quotes, from Profiles of the Future, is his third law: “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic” (Clarke, Arthur C. Profiles of the Future. Gollancz, 1962). The line between magic and technology in Childhood’s End is regularly blurred. There are multiple references to religion, most notably the Overlords’ appearance as devils, and the reference to the Jonah story from the Bible. Humanity’s instinctual antipathy toward the Overlords is explained as a premonition—a mystical phenomenon given a scientific gloss via Einstein’s theory of relativity as it relates to time. There is also a specific interest throughout the novel in paranormal phenomena, called paraphysics in the novel. The human capacity to engage in the paranormal is the core ability that allows them to join the Overmind. Although science and faith are often placed in opposition, Childhood’s End suggests that what is treated as magical or mystical is actually science that humans simply don’t understand yet.

As the world transforms in the presence of the Overlords, one of the major developments is the dissolution of most religions. Even in that dissolution, there is still an instinctual fear when the Overlords appear, and they resemble devils. This innate terror is explained in “The Last Generation” in respect to the relativity of time. Rashaverak explains to Jan that it is a kind of premonition, or a memory of the future. The magical element of premonition is explained in part by Einstein’s relativity theory—science explaining magic. The combination of “some unknown magic of Overlord science” (74) and human curiosity grants humanity knowledge that destroys most religious faith. However, even though religion is largely defeated by science, the seeming dichotomy may be an illusion: “[T]he fall in religion had been paralleled by a decline in science” (75). Although not explicitly stated, this correlation suggests science and religion may arise from the same human tendencies—primarily the willingness of humans to believe in that which seems impossible.

Beginning with Rupert Boyce’s party and his interest in “paraphysics,” the paranormal quietly drives the transformation of mankind. Rashaverak’s presence at the party is prompted by his desire to access Boyce’s collection of paranormal texts. Later, as Rashaverak explains to George what has begun to happen to Jeff, he cites telepathy as part of the boy’s abilities. In Karellen’s final speech to humanity, he explains that “there are powers of the mind, and powers beyond the mind which your science could never have brought within its framework without shattering it entirely” (182), which again seems to place “paraphysics” or mysticism or faith in diametric opposition to science. However, Karellen says “your science,” not simply science. Like Clarke’s later quote, this suggests that sufficiently advanced science will eventually explain all magic.

The universal tragedy of parenthood is that parents must watch their most precious creations become independent, autonomous individuals. The climax of Childhood’s End is an extreme extension of that universal human experience. Multiple elements of the novel underscore the universality of the experience of parenthood. The Overlords are metaphorical parents to humanity. Eventually, the Overlords must watch humanity grow beyond the capacity of the Overlords. There are several moments when the experience of humanity losing their children is directly connected to the experience of individual parents watching their children grow up. The loss of humanity’s children as an extreme example of the experience of parenthood spotlights the conflicting interpretations of the ending.

Beginning with Stormgren’s relationship with Karellen, the dynamic between humans and the Overlords mimics that of parent and child. The Overlords’ few absolute requirements are put in place to protect humanity from their own dangerous impulses. George comments on this before Jeff is rescued or begins to change: “[M]en were like children amusing themselves in some secluded playground, protected from the fierce realties of the outer world” (150-51). Even the secrecy of the Overlords turns out to be a protective measure, just as parents will withhold certain information to protect the innocence of their children. The “outer world” is the knowledge of the Overmind, the eventual destiny of the human race, and the psychological challenge presented by space travel. The protection of the Overlords is a metaphor for the protections offered by parents, and eventually the necessity of that protection is removed by the passage of time and the development of humanity. Similarly, the symbiosis with the Overmind is the metaphorical movement to adulthood for the human species.

There are several moments when the narrative explicitly connects the expected losses of parenthood to the extreme loss experienced by humanity. The first is Rashaverak’s advice to George: “Enjoy them while you may […] they will not be yours for long” (177). As the narrative asserts, this is a universal truth of parenting. While children may feel they are under the protection of their parents for an eternity, parents feel the years speed by until the child has transformed into an adult. Although in the novel the “advice […] contained a threat and a terror it had never held before” (177), the result is analogous: The child reaches childhood’s end at the advent of adulthood, and the parent is left behind. The end of the novel can be seen as either disastrous or miraculous. The same tension exists for parents whose children reach adulthood and leave their parents behind.