Childhood's End: Difference between revisions

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* [[Adaptation Expansion]]: The first part of the novel is basically a slightly-altered retelling of Clarke's short story "Guardian Angel". The second and third parts are original, about what happens after.
* [[Ancient Astronauts]]: The myths aren't from memory, but precognitive visions of the aliens.
* [[Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence]]: {{spoiler|The current generation of humans will be the last one and with them human civilization will cease to exist, as all their children born from that moment on are no longer human and will mind-meld and ascend into a higher form of consciousness that transcends material bodies. Ultimately, that is the fate of all sentient races, except those that are "stuck" -- like the Overlords.}}
* [[Assimilation Plot]]
** {{spoiler|Ever wondered where ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'' got the whole Instrumentality sequence from?}} Now you know.
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* [[Blue and Orange Morality]]
* [[Creepy Child]]: The telekinetic children.
* [[Dark Is Not Evil]]: The {{spoiler|demon-like}} aliens were actually the ''good'' guys... {{spoiler|The reason we thought they were evil and used them in our mythologies as such was mostly because of a sort of species-wide premonition - we now realized that their very appearance would be a sign of our '"end as a corporeal species'"}}.
* [[End of an Age]]: Following a variation on the theme, the setting is [[Science Fiction]] instead of the usual fantasy.
* [[Evolutionary Levels]]
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* [[Outgrown Such Silly Superstitions]]: Every religion besides Buddhism is then discredited.
* [[Psychic Powers]]: The new generation of babies start showing various forms of these. Most notably, Telekinesis.
* [[The End of the World as We Know It]]: {{spoiler|Earth and everything on it become energy for the new generation's journey to join the Overmind.}}
* [[The Singularity]]
* [[Space Whale Aesop]]: Stop killing animals and ruining earth's environment because {{spoiler|you're evolving into a new form that will eventually ruin the Earth anyway!}}
** And oddly enough, {{spoiler|a sperm whale diorama sent into space}} figures into the plot. It doubles as a [[Trojan Horse]].
* [[The Gods Must Be Lazy]]: {{spoiler|They send another race to do their bidding}}.
* [[Title Drop]]: Not directly, but the last third of the book is about the {{spoiler|the end of both individual children's lives and the end of childhood for humanity as a species, as they ascended to a higher plane of existence.}}
* [[Vichy Earth]]: Crossed with [[One World Order]], but ultimately subverted.
 
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Science Fiction Literature{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Childhoods End]]
[[Category:Literature]]
[[Category:ChildhoodsEnglish EndLiterature]]
[[Category:Science Fiction Literature]]
[[Category:Works by Arthur C. Clarke]]