The Meaning of the “End of the World”

A Milestone Documents E-text
Table of Contents
The Meaning of the “End of the World”

  You don't have access to this content. Please try to log in with your institution. Sign In

Abstract

People’s fascination with doomsday prophesies goes back to ancient history, but recent centuries, arguably, have seen a surge in end-of-the-world predictions, many of which propose relatively realistic scenarios—given the destructive potential of modern weaponry. Besides the obvious and popular meaning of the “end of the world” as a sudden disaster of cosmic magnitude, many have argued that the “end” in question points rather to the envisioned consummation of a long progressive movement, the highest point on the developmental scale and one that will crown the efforts of all previous generations by bringing about a state of ultimate perfection, beyond which no further advancement is possible or desirable.

Contents