by Lexi Cooper, Editor
From Good Omens to The Wheel of Time TV series to most Marvel movies these days, the end of the world seems to be near in so many stories. Characters often team up to face impossible odds, and they usually come out on top. It is nice to see a world in peril saved, but if you’re like me and watching it for the hundredth time, you start to wonder why the world must be in peril in the first place?
Stories Then Vs Now
It seems to me that stories weren’t always this way. At least, I don’t recall Moby Dick threatening to come on land and eat everyone (though perhaps that’s what Ahab thought the stakes were). Yes, there have been many apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic stories throughout time, but I’m talking about another kind of story. Apocalyptic stories are about the end of the world with no question; that’s their whole concept and premise. But in the stories I’m talking about, the stakes could be lower. Peter Parker doesn’t have to prevent the multiverse from ripping apart; he can be the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man we love, swinging around New York and stopping crime.
What Changed?
So what could have caused us to gravitate toward stories where the stakes are so high? Perhaps it’s because the world feels smaller than it used to. With the internet and the ability to travel almost anywhere in the world in about a day, we have a much more globalized view than people used to. All I have to do to find you what’s going on in Australia or Egypt or Brazil is pick up my phone and Google it. With that global perspective, it is easy to think that smaller stories aren’t as exciting or don’t matter as much.
It’s The End of the World
Another reason could be that we feel like the world is ending. Even before the pandemic, there always seemed to be a global panic about something. This isn’t to minimize the terrible things that have happened or are happening in the world, but with global pandemics and wars and other worldwide problems, it is easier for writers to connect with a global audience that way. Everyone knows what the past two years have been like, but not everyone knows what it is to want to win prom queen. It can be hard to care about a character whose biggest problem is that they might not get the girl of their dreams when the problems of the world are so much bigger than that.
All this isn’t to downgrade end of the world stories. I have read so many wonderful stories with these high stakes. They have a place, and they give people hope that we can save the world. However, people need hope for their individual problems too. We all want to believe that we can be confident or find love or be successful or find peace, so it is important to have characters who want those things too. “Smaller” stories don’t have to be small at all. In well-written stories, low stakes (at least compared to the end of the world) can feel like they are the most important things on the planet. It can be incredibly powerful to watch a character learn how to love themselves or learn that it is okay to take breaks or ask for help.
Balancing End of the World Stakes
These things aren’t mutually exclusive either. Recently I read Cytonic, the third book in Brandon Sanderson’s Skyward series. Without spoiling anything, I’ll say that the stakes in Spensa’s story have grown since the first book (which by the way is about a girl who wants to become a pilot). In this third book, Spensa faces big stakes while going on a beautiful and personal journey. This book felt more about Spensa than about the issues she was facing, even though the stakes were large.
So perhaps the problem with end of the world stories isn’t the size of the stakes. Perhaps the problem is that they feel like the end of the world but not the end of someone’s world. It’s easy to forget the character and their personal problems when everyone on Earth is going to die. Their troubles become overshadowed, and the audience is led to think, “great, the world is ending again.” Characters are what we remember in great stories. You can’t have a story without characters, and you can’t have a great story without great characters.
Reading Recommendations
So here are some great stories with great characters that may or may not be about the end of the world but certainly don’t feel like they are about the end of the world.
Skyward by Brandon Sanderson
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Scythe by Neal Shusterman
The Martian by Andy Weir
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
