The Air at the Top of the Bottle

The Ullage Group header image 1

The Epilogue to “Dr. Arnoldi”

September 18th, 2016 · 3 Comments

Tiffany Thayer, founder of the Fortean Society, was often criticized for his novels, which tended to the trashy. Nobody could say, however, that he couldn’t bring one to a glorious close.

His Dr. Arnoldi (1934) is a memorably disgusting piece of science fiction about what happens when people stop dying. The terminally ill remain ill but alive, criminals are executed but survive, the used book business suffers because there are no estate sales… it’s a horrifying picture. By the end, the earth has become so overpopulated that man covers it “like a solid sphere of maggots.”

Thayer follows this with an Epilogue:

epilogue1

epilogue2

(Posted by Doug Skinner)

 

Tags: Forteana · Literature

3 responses so far ↓

  • 1 mamie // Sep 18, 2016 at 11:27 pm

    Nice! The maggot image is just lovely!

  • 2 Anthony Matt // Oct 21, 2016 at 1:45 pm

    Dr. Arnoldi is a master work of science fiction! The best epilogue ever! Thanks for recommending/warning me about it.

  • 3 Doug // Oct 25, 2016 at 10:23 am

    Read it again! Experience the horror that is Thayer one more time!