Nuclear apocalypse obsession?

April 19, 2006 8:23 AM

Is there a name for a morbid obsession for apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic everything??

I follow quasi-religiously each one of the (fortunately!) frequent posts here asking about survival skills in case of a end-of-the-world or decline-of-society situation, and try to note references on scifi works about this same theme to get them as time and resources permit.

I find a strange pleasure browsing flickr and other pic sites looking for urban and industrial decay photography.

I love all Soviet and american propaganda about the "bright atomic future" of the 1950s and everything red scare- or cold war-related, fact and fiction: Nuclear related military paraphernalia. Underground bunkers and factories and fallout shelters. Cheesy radioactive-mutant stories.

So my question could be stated like this: "what's a name for this... hobby/obsession/condition?". To be more precise, i'd be looking for a community, resource/knowledge center, or simply some well-aimed keywords to apply my google-fu on. Ideally, something much like Orion's arm on a more nuclear-apocalypse-y style would be great. A little fantasy is fine. All i have now i've obtained from recent googleing, askmefi threads and some wikipedia articles, so feel free to throw everything you have, even the most obvious or remotely related stuff. All will be well received and dutifully consumed. TIA.

posted by ArchEnemy to sports, hobbies, & recreation (19 comments total)

how about apocolypticaphilliac

i also love those questions, yet have no answer for yours.
posted by poppo at 8:26 AM on April 19, 2006

Some fancy words that are associated with the end of the world are "millenarian" and "eschatology". Both originated in a more religious context, but I've heard them applied to more modern situations as well.

Also, you might enjoy Exit Mundi if you haven't already found it.
posted by Johnny Assay at 8:30 AM on April 19, 2006

May I suggest you check out www.rr-bb.com?

You might get a kick out of it.

Sorry, I have no word for what you are though.
posted by jon_kill at 8:48 AM on April 19, 2006

You might also enjoy adding the books in this thread, to your reading list, I know I've been enjoying them far too much. Personally I'm a fan of the ecological collapse and/or plague scenarios for the world's end, but I count Alas Babylon and On the Beach as favorites, and which are both from the era you enjoy. I also reccomend the radio play The Wheel by SciFi.com's Seeing Ear Theatre

I sadly have no answer to the "What am I?" question, although misanthrope might be applied by others, which I disagree with. I don't hate people, I just think as a species were a little too goddammed cocky and it wouldn't hurt to have us all taken down a notch, or several hundred. You know, as a learning experience. I think I also find a lot of hope in the stories of survival after such all-encompassing change, hope for people now. So basically I don't think you or I hate humanity, although we might be considered so by the media we chose to consume.
posted by nelleish at 9:01 AM on April 19, 2006

eschatological is the best word
posted by trinarian at 9:19 AM on April 19, 2006

Might I suggest 'paranoid'?
posted by Sara Anne at 9:29 AM on April 19, 2006

Just go with "morbid."
posted by furiousthought at 9:38 AM on April 19, 2006

I don't have a name for fans of this particular genre, but I know a great resource for you:

Post Apocalyptic Media

It has lots of good information and links about movies, games, TV shows, and books on this topic, as well as some pretty active discussion forums, and news about current events related to the topic.

As for the name, maybe this is your opportunity to come up with one?
posted by Help Me Impeach Bush at 9:38 AM on April 19, 2006

Hellinahandbasketology.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 10:09 AM on April 19, 2006

@Sara Anne: i'm not afraid to recognise i may be a bit paranoid sometimes. I find it kind of funny to switch into a 'suspect of everything' state of alertness every now and then, but OTOH, it's not like I think there will be ICBMs raining tomorrow. I just like to take a perverse point of view.

@nelleish: i think i understand what you mean when talking about hope, survival and reconstruction of things, because i find it to be the most interesting part of it. It's great to witness the reconstruction of society from chaos, step by step.

thank you all for every link posted!! i have a bunch of tabs to be read in the next few hours / days. keep'em coming!
posted by ArchEnemy at 11:11 AM on April 19, 2006

I loves me some eschatology.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 11:23 AM on April 19, 2006

Talk of paranoia -- do I know you or are you reading my thoughts/stalking me? A friend of mine and I were discussing this exact question the other day. The best we came up with was apocagasm (but that was more for the joy one feels when reading eschtological materials) and apocaphilia.

As to the, as nellish puts it, "What am I?" question, I would answer that as "not alone."

And if you haven't already, when you read those old threads make damn sure you've taken everyone's advice on reading Stewart's Earth Abides. Major apocagasim.
posted by The Bishop of Turkey at 12:10 PM on April 19, 2006

Back in the days when the Y2K bug was going to kill us all, the terms "doomer" and "Doombrood" (as in, he's a member of the Doombrood) were thrown around quite a bit. Maybe "Doombrooder" would fit you? Sort of a nice double meaning to "brood" there...
posted by staggernation at 12:59 PM on April 19, 2006

Oh, and if you're looking for things to Google, try "TEOTWAWKI" (and be sure to look on Google News as well).
posted by staggernation at 1:02 PM on April 19, 2006

Um, actually, if you find a lot of results for that on Google News, that would be a bad sign. I meant Google Groups.
posted by staggernation at 1:56 PM on April 19, 2006

I'm afraid you're in the loving, relentless grasp of myco•nepho•mania. Lie back and smell the coffin.
posted by rob511 at 2:20 PM on April 19, 2006

I have a variant on the same thing. Oh, here in my apocalypse bookmark folder... what about "Doom Junkie?" Nah, I don't like that either.

P.S. Urban decay photos!
posted by salvia at 5:38 PM on April 19, 2006

Eschatologic fever ...
posted by hortense at 7:14 PM on April 19, 2006

@staggernation: i'm into doom metal music too, so doomer might come handy as a fit-all approach
posted by ArchEnemy at 4:03 AM on April 20, 2006