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In The Period Following World War Ii, There Were Drastic

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In the period following World War II, there were drastic changes in Britain’s position in the world as it not only lost it’s status as a great imperial power, but also experienced a number of social and political changes. Fears and anxieties regarding the decline of Britain’s global significance following the end of the Second World War are revealed in literature that examines and critiques the responses to the decline. In John Christopher’s The Death of Grass, the destruction of all grasses by a virus removes the literal groundwork of society and problematized the interference in nature by man as well as the interference in science by the government, while Naomi Mitchison’s Solution Three furthers the dangers of political intervention in …show more content…

However, concurrent with advancing knowledge about the physical structures that compose life, was concern about the use of this knowledge in a time of growing social and political unrest. With social issues such as human overpopulation and a decline in the international prestige of the British nation, came anxieties that genetic faults within the people were to blame, and advancing progress regarding genetic makeup sought a way to politicize the science behind the decline of the nation. The incorporation of science into politics is explored in literature of the time, such as The Death of Grass and Solution Three. In both texts, man begins an attack on nature, reflecting an antagonistic position, as he “does not experience himself as a part of nature but as an outside force destined to dominate and conquer it” (Schumacher 11). In distancing themselves from their role in the natural ecosystem and attempting to manufacture perfection, the societies in both texts face environmental crises due to a lack of harmony with nature, with political ad social consequences. With the social and political restructuring of society following World War II and the historical discovery of DNA as a backdrop, the texts explore the impact of human intervention and corruption of natural processes. In 1859 Darwin introduced the concept of natural selection with his text, On The Origins of Species. Natural selection is part of the theory of evolution

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