The Last Man

This title is printed to order. This book may have been self-published. If so, we cannot guarantee the quality of the content. In the main most books will have gone through the editing process however some may not. We therefore suggest that you be aware of this before ordering this book. If in doubt check either the author or publisher’s details as we are unable to accept any returns unless they are faulty. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Mary Shelley was a British novelist, short story writer, dramatist, essayist, biographer, and travel writer, whose gothic style and progressive ideas have had a permanent influence on literary history. Daughter of political philosopher William Godwin and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary Shelley quickly developed ideas about female independence, sexual freedom, and how to compromise in the face of nineteenth century English convention. Her 1826 novel, The Last Man , reflects Shelley’s fears about civilization and the shortcomings of human behavior. The narrator discovers a prophetic manuscript, written in 2100 by the last survivor of a twenty-first century apocalypse, which recounts how a deadly plague spread throughout Europe and the world. The scribe, Lionel Verney, describes a world that is both fantasy, and a reflection of Shelley’s reality. She used this novel to scrutinize the machinations of politics and philosophy, and reflect upon pitfalls of human behavior–selfishness, brutality, pride–that she saw in the world around her. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper.