Prophesying the End of Human Time: Eco-Anxiety and Regress in J. G. Ballard’s Short Fiction

Despite being written half a century before the term “eco-anxiety” (Gifford and Gifford) was coined, J. G. Ballard’s disaster fictions can be read in context of social psychodynamics climate change. My aim this article is to demonstrate that fiction, catastrophes devastation nature cause characters realize Earth not going able sustain human life much longer, their psychological reaction either subdued anger or strange numbness. In order do this, I analyze two short stories by Ballard: “Deep End” (1961) “Low-Flying Aircraft” (1975) show how protagonists are affected landscape they inhabit: de-populated wastelands whose wildlife extinct mutated. argue it awareness civilization on earth coming its end results state mind akin eco-anxiety. The immersed own inner space these clocks mark passage from past future but countdown end.