# V: The Fall of the First Men explained — Last and First Men

> Chapter companion for Last and First Men by Olaf Stapledon.

## What happens

This chapter covers the decline and fall of the First Men, beginning with the First Dark Age after the collapse of the World State. It describes the causes of the prolonged degradation, including a biological 'senescence' and the loss of vitality. The narrative then focuses on the Patagonian civilization, which arises after the dark age. A 'Divine Boy' prophet emerges, preaching a gospel of youth and rejuvenation, but his later, more mature message is misunderstood. His cult leads to a brief golden age, but the race eventually reverts to its middle-aged state. The chapter ends with the Patagonians discovering the ruins of the previous civilization, setting the stage for a catastrophe.

## Themes in this chapter

### Suffering and Redemption

The chapter explores the suffering of the First Men during the dark age and the potential for redemption through the Divine Boy's message, though it ultimately fails.

### The Artist and the Myth

The Divine Boy becomes a myth that is distorted over time, showing how a visionary's message is transformed into a sentimentalized and hobbling ideal.

### Human Nature and Evolution

The chapter discusses the biological senescence of the First Men and the potential for rejuvenation, highlighting the limits and possibilities of human nature.

## Character check-ins

### The First Men

The species that falls into a dark age after the collapse of the World State, suffering from biological senescence and cultural decay.

### The Patagonians

A later civilization of the First Men, characterized by a middle-aged culture and the rise of the Divine Boy cult.

### The Racial Hero

The 'Divine Boy' prophet, a biological 'sport' who preaches rejuvenation and later iconoclasm, but whose message is distorted after his death.

### Fate

Personified as directing events toward an allotted end, using diverse instruments to bring about the fall of the First Men.

## Key lines

> It is as though Fate, directing events toward an allotted end, had availed herself of many diverse instruments, none of which would have sufficed alone, though all worked together irresistibly in the same sense.

Fate seems to have used many different causes, each insufficient by itself, but together they inevitably led to the downfall of the First Men.

_This reflects the theme of cosmic indifference and the complex interplay of factors leading to decline._

> The prophet turned out to be biologically unique among Patagonians. When many of his coevals were showing signs of senescence, he remained physically young.

The prophet was a biological anomaly, staying youthful while others aged, which made his message of rejuvenation seem miraculous.

_This highlights the theme of human nature and evolution, and the potential for a 'sport' to influence a race._

> Feeling themselves old, they yearned to be young again. But, through fixed immaturity of mind, they could never recognize that the true, though unlooked-for, fulfilment of youth’s passionate craving is not the mere achievement of the ends of youth itself, but an advance into a more awake and farseeing vitality.

The Patagonians, feeling old, desired youth but could not understand that true fulfillment comes not from staying young but from growing into a more mature and awakened vitality.

_This encapsulates the tragedy of the Patagonians and the theme of spiritual and philosophical aspiration._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/last_and_first_men_se/chapters/v-the-fall-of-the-first-men
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/last_and_first_men_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/last_and_first_men_se/chapters