Matt Mammoser

HST 390
5/9/2016

Experiments in Futurity

The Enlightenment was an era built around words. To this day, we

remember most the great writers of the period such as Voltaire, Jefferson,
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and Locke. These writings give form and substance to this formative era in
modern society. With the rising literacy due to the invention of the printing
press almost two centuries earlier, the masses were voracious for literary
material. During the 18th century, we see the rise of early entertainment
media. One of the first fledgling genres of this media was pre-science fiction.
Though science fiction would not really come into its own until the 19th
century, some of the very first works in this genre appeared during the
Enlightenment. These novels are figments of the time in which they were
written, giving insight into the ideas and dreams of their contemporary time
period. Prime examples of this include Louis-Sbastien Merciers The Year
2440: A Dream if there ever was one and Jean-Baptiste Franois Xavier
Cousin De Grainvilles The Last Man. While many science fiction novels in the
18th century, such as Merciers LAnno 2440, portrayed visions of a hopeful
future built on the ideals of the enlightenment, this view was not universal.
Grainvilles Le Dernier Homme shows a society built on these same ideals on
the brink of extinction.
Merciers The Year 2440 was an extremely popular book during his life
and has been written about by numerous scholars. It went through 25
different editions after its first printing in 1771. i In modern scholarship it has
remained fairly popular. The Year 2440 features fairly prominently in Robert
Darntons The Forbidden Bestsellers of Pre-Revolutionary France. Darnton
examines The Year 2440 in the context of his larger focus. This focus is
whether or not The Year 2440, along with several other novels, notably
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influenced France towards the revolution. Additionally, Riikka Forsstrom

wrote a full length treatment of Merciers novel, examining themes of
happiness. ii Specifically she focuses on the nature of Merciers Utopia. Most
of her representation is presented in the context of the Enlightenment. This
provides the context for her arguments over how and why Mercier
constructed his utopia as he did. There are several other articles and minor
treatments of Merciers novel. However, many of these treatments are only
passing or reference The Year 2440 in relation to other works by Mercier.
Grainvilles book, by comparison, is largely untouched by scholarship. I
have only managed to find a single article of any length or depth on the
book. All other mentions are extremely brief and circumspect. An article,
written by Amy Ransom, is essentially a brief plot summary and an overview
of the major themes. iii The only other major treatment is the work by Paul
Alkon. His work focuses on the addition of secular themes, such as advanced
technology, to Grainvilles novel. He uses this to discuss what he calls the
secularization of the apocalypse which occurred in the 18th century. iv Writers
in this era moved away from biblical ends to the world for the first time.
While Grainvilles apocalypse is biblical it contains a number of secular ideas
and themes that were novel of the time.
Mericiers life was filled with words and stories. For Mercier, writing was a
profession. He was born the son of a craftsman who made his living polishing
metals. He grew up in a modest household. He made his living by regularly

churning out a variety of print material such as plays, novels and guides to
Paris. The ancien regime in control of Paris at the time considered the novel
to be harmful and it was quickly banned. Mercier was undoubtedly aware this
was a possibility as he did not sign his name to the book until after the
collapse of the French Monarchy during the French Revolution. Despite this,
The Year 2440 itself was extremely popular. It was published in 11 different
editions in French before 1799. It was also translated into English, Dutch,
Italian, and German. Copies of The Year 2440 can be found in the personal
libraries of notable people such as Thomas Jefferson and George Washington.
v

In it, the unnamed narrator (implied to be Mercier himself) falls asleep after

an argument with a friend and wakes up 600 years in the future. After a bit
of confusion, he is taken on a tour of the city and shown the many marvels of
the new time. This novel was written for a popular audience and was widely
consumed in Europe.
The novel The Year 2440 provides and expansive view of 25th century
Paris. The narrator is given an extensive tour showing him all the sights of
this new Paris. Many of these sites portray themes popular during the
enlightenment such as Secularism, print media, and the sciences. Notably,
the book would seem a bit odd to a modern audience. Many of the themes of
the book are meant to be presented in contrast of the world Mercier is
writing from. Under the repressive and stifling policies of Louis the XVIs
monarchy the idea of a world as free as represented in Merciers novel would
have seemed just as Mercier titled it: a dream. Additionally the book lacks
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anything resembling standard literary structure or plot sequence. The

protagonists trips forward and backwards in time are associated with him
falling asleep, and spared no more thought. His journey through the city is
literally a walking tour with no beginning-middle-end chronology generally
assigned to books. Indeed, the entire novel is noticeably devoid of any kind
of chronology. This was likely because it made it easier for Mercier to slot in
new sections of the book in later revisions without disrupting the novel.
There is also no real antagonist or conflict present in the novel. This is a
completely different literary style from that assumed by Grainville.
Grainvilles was born in 1746 the son of a military officer. Grainville became
an ordained priest by the time he was 20. Unfortunately for Grainville, he
lived in France during the political upheavals of the French Revolution. This is
a time when radical secularism and hatred for Catholicism gripped the
country. However, after the French Revolution gained steam in France he
quickly found himself despised as a member of the papacy. He took the oath
to the Republic in 1790, as many priests did, to show his loyalty. He
eventually left the priesthood when the Terror came to avoid the persecution
it involved. He later married, but remained unhappy, with few job prospects.
Not long after finished The Last Man, which had been his lifes work, he
commit suicide on January 1st 1805 at around 2 a.m. The Last Man was later
published posthumously. vi

The Last Man itself is structured as prose. Grainvilles book is most notable
for being the first of the Dying Earth subgenre. Before his death Grainville
had originally intended to adapt the novel into an epic poem like those of the
past. Indication are of this are clear largely in Grainvilles stylistic choices,
such as its organization into cantos rather than chapters. It tells the story of
Omegrius, the last fertile male on Earth, and his hunt for Syderia, the last
fertile female on Earth. Omegrius is the last descendant of all of the great
kings of France. Hes also the first child born in France in twenty years.
Through a variety of signs he is told that he must seek out Syderia, the last
fertile woman on Earth. They represent the last hope for the repopulation of
the Earth. Much as Adam and Eve were the first human couple Omegrius and
Syderia are the last couple. After a series of trials and tribulations, he finds
her and they marry. Before long, the first man, Adam, arrives and warns
them that they cannot repopulate the human race. When eventually
convinced that it is indeed the will of God, Omegrius leaves Syderia. They
both die and the universe is destroyed. However, in so doing they have
allowed themselves and the remainder of the human race to pass into
heaven.
Both Mercier and Grainville lived during a time of immense political
upheaval in France. The harrowing times these men lived in likely influenced
their opinions on the Enlightenment. They both lived in France throughout
the bloody events of the French Revolution. Interestingly, their novels are
published on either side of the French Revolution, Mercier in 1771 and
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Grainville in 1805. However, it would be incorrect to say that French

Revolution had no effect on Merciers writings in The Year 2440. Though
written in 1771 Mercier continued to make revisions and additions as late as
1799. Mercier himself was imprisoned during the Terror; however it was clear
that he still held to his ideal of a utopian society as presented in The Year
2440. Additionally, Merciers novel at times invokes violence as a method for
its achievement noting For some states there is a stage where it becomes
unavoidable- a bloody and terrible stage I speak of civil war. vii There is no
way Mercier couldve predicted the horror and bloodshed of the French
Revolution, but it is clear that peace was not sacrosanct to him.
As with Mercier, Grainvilles firsthand experiences with the rationality
and secularism of the French Revolution no doubt colored his opinion of the
ideas of the Enlightenment. Grainvilles own sufferings during the French
Revolution were numerous. As an ordained priest he was subject to
considerable prejudice as the highly secular Revolutionary authorities rapidly
curbed the power of the church. During the revolution, he took an oath to the
constitution as a part of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy. This wouldve
suborned him to the revolutionary state. However, this proved to not be
enough and he was forced to marry his cousin during the Terror as well as
leave the clergy. After Napoleons coup and the reinstatement of the empire
much conservative sentiment returned to France. Grainville, as a married
priest, quickly became a social pariah. He was completely unable to find
work, and was left penniless and miserable. Grainville had begun writing The
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Last Man at 15 or 16, and he managed to finish his lifes work. However,
after brief attempts to circulate his work he succumbed to his despair and
commit suicide, thus bringing a tragic end to an unhappy life.

viii

Grainville and Mercier reach very different conclusions about religion in

their respective works, no doubt due to their varied outlook on the ideals of
the Enlightenment. In Merciers representation, the Catholic Church is dead.
In Merciers vision, the Catholic Church was sustained by public opinion. In
The Year 2440, public opinion eventually turned away from Catholicism and
the institution collapsed. Though temples remain and God is a fairly major
part of society, the priests are essentially deists. The temples themselves are
sparse and lack the religious imagery present in Catholic churches. Upon
entering a temple in Paris in the 25th century, the following description is
given by the narrator:
The altar was in the centre and totally unadornedThere were neither
statues nor allegorical images, nor paintings to be seen. The name of God
alone, several times repeated and traces on the wall in different languages,
seved to ornament them, in short, every unsuitable decoration was carefully
avoided. God Alone was in his holy temple. ix

Essentially, religion has become a far more subdued affair. Rather than the
powerful religious and political institution of the 18th century, the churches of
25th are subordinate to the state. x They represent more a state of spirituality
than true religiosity. There are also some oblique references to the problems
with the Catholic Church of Merciers time. Money boxes in 25th century
Pariss church exist, but are only for charity and are out of plain sight.
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Instead, they are concealed behind the entry doors of the church.. This is to
avoid the openly money grubbing nature exemplified by the Catholic Church
in the 18th century.
There is also a serious emphasis on individuality in religion. It is
represented as more of an individualist affair. Their entire lack of
denomination and paraphernalia is starkly bare. The narrators guide
specifically notes the lack of ceremony, stating neither do they make merit
of fasting, or reciting psalms in bad Latin, or of remaining dumb and stupid
all their lives. xi Not only is this religious ceremony represented as
unnecessary, it is stated as being actively tied to stupidity. In Merciers view
priest only ambition is that their hearts and hands may be pure enough to
be ruled to the Father of Men, and, like him, they love all mankind with equal
affection. xii There is perhaps no better representation of Merciers
dismissive attitude than his discussion of the bible and other holy texts.
While exploring the city, the narrator asks about the lack of theologians. His
guide tells him that religion is largely a private affair. He then says Every
book of Theology is sealed up under immense weights and kept in
subterranean vaults If we are ever at war with any neighboring nation,
instead of pointing great cannons against them, we send them those
dangerous books. xiii For Mercier Christianity and similar dogmatic religions
are not even close to a force of enlightenment. Rather they are a kind of
biological warfare. In Merciers mind these things were so destructive as to
be weapons equivalent to great cannons.
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For Grainville religion filled a far different role. It is the ever present, if
hidden, force which is driving behind the scenes. For Grainville, religion is the
inescapable truth that Enlightenment society is denying to their ultimate
detriment. The very premise of the novel contains enormous religious
overtones. As Adam and Eve were the first human couple so Omegrius and
Syderia are the last. Their stated purpose in the novel is to seed a new
human race as Adam and Eve seeded the first one. The protagonists
themselves are hounded by prophecy and biblical imagery fills the novel.
Indeed, Adam himself appears in the climax of the novel and is directly
responsible for its ending. After perpetrating Original Sin, he has spent
eternity before the gates of hell watching all the damned souls enter.
However, he is promised release from his torment if he convinces Omegrius
and Syderia to abandon their plans to restart the human race. Though
Grainvilles novel is set in the final days of the earth it includes a description
of the events leading up to the present time. In the past humans built a
utopian society through the use of science. However, this society ultimately
consumed all the resources of the Earth. Despite the effort of these scientists
to save it, eventually nothing more could be done. As the novel picks up
human society has completely collapsed and Omegrius and Syderia are the
only fertile humans on Earth. This is far from Merciers representation of a
secular society. Instead, societys turn away from god and to science has
ultimately doomed them. Indeed, their failure to be devout to god results in
the destruction of the entire physical universe.
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Multiple allusions are made throughout the text to the fallible nature of
life on Earth. During his first meeting with Omegrius and Syderia, Adam
states Alas! Happiness is rare on Earth. It is in Heaven that you must seek
it. xiv However, much of the novel focuses on Omegrius and Syderias
attempts to restart the human race. Because this story takes many cues
from the biblical story of Genesis, it too has a character who is a tempter and
a trickster. In The Last Man this role is take by an entity called The Spirit of
Earth. It is the entity which in some senses is a physical embodiment of the
forces of Nature. However, allusions to its nature as the devil in the story are
evident. For example, during its introduction its hair is described as waving
like flaming serpentsxv. This entity is a persistent aid to Omegrius in his
quest to find Syderia, even impersonating her father to give them permission
to consummate their union. However, its interest in humanity is ultimately
self-interest. If humanity dies so does the Earth. However, its death is final as
God had decreed The lives of many men shall fall before you; but, whereas
they will wake again to eternal life, your death and the death of the Earth
shall be final.
The second major representation of religiosity in the novel arises in the
ending. Adam attempts to convince Omegrius to abandon Syderia. He
eventually succeeds when God shows Omegrius a vision of his future of
spring. They are described as his hideous progeny, misshapen in form and
cruel in disposition, making perpetual war on one anotherxvi. Omegrius
eventually agree to leave Syderia. Fearing he will not be able to leave if he
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sees her again, he abandons her without so much as an explanation. After

Omegrius abandons her, much of the ninth canto is focused on Syderias
confusion, fear and pain. However, this is eventually lifted when Syderia is
shown a vision of heaven briefly before her death. Far from her earlier
despair, instead she gazed in total ecstasy, for she experienced most vividly
a feeling unknown to mortal man purest happiness and absolute peace
together in the happy union that Heaven reserves fot the justxvii. She is also
reunited with Omegrius. For Grainville, Heaven and service to God are the
paradise. For humans happiness of this nature is something that is
impossible to achieve on Earth. This is clear in a line of The Last Man where
Grainville states On Earth, joy and peace are ever separate, for happiness is
always hedged out by the cares and troubles of life. Peace brings with her
weariness and boredomxviii. For Grainville Heaven is the ultimate destination.
Furthermore, the will of God is shown as both inescapable and
desirable. The Spirit of Earth tries repeatedly to foil the plans of God but is
ultimately stymied. In addition, continuing humanity would only lead to the
horrific tragedy of Omegriuss terrible offspring. If humanity dies, the Rapture
will occur and humanity is taken into Heaven with God. Thus, Humanity is
only saved when Omegrius accepts the will of God and sacrifices himself and
Syderia which allows humanity to truly die. In Grainvilles novel Omegrius
ultimately becomes Adams antithesis. Rather than giving in to the will of the
trickster, he gives in to the will of God. Through this he purifies all humanity
of sin and allows them all entry into heaven. This is a far cry from Merciers
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dissociated religion. This presents a similar contrast to the position of the two
men on their approach to science.
The Year 2440 and The Last Man take a very different view on the role
of science. For The Year 2440, science is at the center of society and is one
of the core structures of refining it. Entire temples are built to revere men
whove invented key devices. The narrator mentions walking through
temples paying homage to the inventors of things like the incline plane, the
lever and the wheel. Mercier also places a strong emphasis on city living and
the refinement of city planning, construction and hygiene. One of the first
things the narrator noted upon entering 25th century Paris is the changes to
the streets: I was surprised to find the street so clean and so free from
bustle and confusion, and yet the city appeared well populated, but likewise
well regulated, and om every street I saw a man, whose business it was to
direct the order of carriages and foot passengersxix Similarly, the houses
all throughout Paris have been redone. The narrator comments But what
shall I say of the flat roofs [sic] filled with flower-pots and of all the houses of
the same height, which formed a spacious gardenxx.
The number one virtue in Merciers society is writing. Though few
forms of writing are disapproved of, theology being one such exception,
philosophy and the sciences are preferred. Writers who have written
exceptional works are the closest thing Merciers society has to an upper
class. Exceptionally wise individuals are granted special hats that indicate

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their status. These hats allow them to get access to anywhere they might
wish to go, and allow them free access to the kingxxi. Similarly, these wizened
individuals are the only ones who regularly travel by carriage. Even the
nobility are expected to travel on foot unless they are also members of this
upper classxxii. Similarly, bad writing is a source of shame. During his trip
through the city, the narrator comes across a man wearing a mask and
inquires as to the reason. His guide explains He is an author who published
bad workxxiii. Thus for Mercier, the most important aspect of society is
writing. It is only through writing that one might achieve greatness. Even
moreso, in the society constructed in The Year 2440 writing is implied to be a
method of achieving immortality. The works of the greatest authors are held
onto and studied. These authors and learners are given highest reverence in
Merciers society. Indeed, during the narrators visit to the 25th century church
his guide recounts their beliefs on the nature of the afterlife. He describes it
as a ladder wherein one gradually ascends by learning more. The more you
learn the higher on the ladder you get. The guides specific example is Isaac
Newton about whom he says the soul of Isaac Newton, by its own activity,
flew up toward the heavenly spheres, which he discovered and pondered. It
were unjust [sic] therefore to suppose that the breath of death could have
power to destroy a genius so truly eminentxxiv. For Mercier, the way to
enlightenment and paradise is via learning and writing, not devotion to God.
Grainvilles novel tells a far different story. His novel also recounts the
rise of a society built on tenants of science and rationalism. Using these
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tenants humanity manages to build a golden age. Indeed, Grainville even

praises this creativity. However, this praise is tempered by disappointment.
When Omegrius is describing his trip across the Atlantic aboard an airship to
Adam, Adams response is Oh! Why does the virtue of men fail to match
their inventiveness?xxv This is a clear statement to the idea that while
science is not necessarily bad, it is something that humanity is perhaps
taking too far. For Grainville, we would be well advised to place faith in God
as well.
This point is further exemplified when the story of how humanity
arrived in its current sorry state is explained. Humanity constructed a
wondrous society on the basis of technology. Eventually, one of their greatest
scientists, Philantor, even discovers the secret to eternal life. However, he
initially deigns to keep this secret to himself. He fears that spreading this gift
to all humanity would make life on Earth unsustainable due to overcrowding.
Given that humanity exhausts the worlds resources without immortality, he
is undoubtedly correct. Eventually, Philantor decides that he should share
this secret. He calls all of the kings of the world together and gives them an
urn full of fire that grants immortality. He demands that they grant this
immortality only to those who are truly worthy. The terms for this worthiness
are eventually decided to be intellectualism. In order to be granted
immortality, one must receive near unanimous confirmation from all of
humanity. Thus, many strive for this immortality, only to die in the attempt.
For Grainville, this no doubt presented a kind of irony. These men strove so
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hard to achieve immortality through science when it was readily available

through faith in God.
This desire for immortality is partially responsible for Humanitys
ensuing golden age. Indeed, human achievements are described as reading
the histories of those times, it is difficult to believe that such works were
those of human beings; it seemed, rather, as if more perfect beings had
come to live on Earth. Tragically, it was not to last. Earth gradually set on
into old age. At first humanity attempted to preserve itself via science.
However, their attempts fail and they are further disheartened when the
moon is destroyedxxvi. Eventually this disaster is temporally averted by a
French priest named Ormus. This is noteworthy because it is a man of God
who saves humanity. He does so by having humanity reroute the rivers of the
world. This gives them new access to the fertile and untouched riverbeds
from which to farm. After his success, Ormus proposes an even more
audacious project. His proposes a long term solution whereby humanity
moves the entirety of the oceans aside and lives on what was the ocean bed.
At first this succeeds. Unfortunately, not long into the project humanity
becomes infertile. With overpopulation less of a concern, the interest in
Ormuss project wanes.
This failure of the ocean project is a twofold representation. First,
humanity turning away from Ormus, a man of God, is doubtlessly symbolic.
Second, we see the failure of science. Despite all its attempts, it ultimately

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fails to save humanity from the coming damnation. Though they could deal
with the collapse of the terrain around them, Humanity ultimately proves
incapable of solving the problem of infertility. This problem will slowly wear
down humanity until the time of Omegrius and Syderia. By the time the two
main characters come to live, humanity exists only as small scattered
refuges, hanging on to the last bits of fertile land on Earth. However, where
science fails God does not. Because Omegrius agrees to walk away from
Syderia at the end of the novel, all humanity is resurrected and ascends to
Heaven. There they are granted the eternal life so many of them had toiled
after during life.
The last major theme for both of these works is the subject of futurity.
Both authors chose to displace their novels into the future. This is an
important development because rather than be set in a far off, unreachable
land these texts were set in the future. This lends them an air of inevitability.
Indeed, according to Richard Darnton The Year 2440 demanded to be read
as a serious guide book to the futurexxvii. By placing their novels in the
future, both authors were pondering on the eventual fate of society
according to its present ideals. For Mercier, with refinement and effort these
ideals could lead to a utopia. He felt that the future he presented was a
dramatic improvement over the present. By directly contrasting his society of
the future with the city of Paris, he sought to show areas where Paris could
be improved and his future be made real

17

By contrast, Grainville saw the eventual conclusion of these ideals

could only be damnation. Only by returning to faith in God could we achieve
salvation. His novel shows humans proceeding down the path of science to a
dead end. His book represents a warning for society to turn back now or lose
itself forever. His book is full of contrasts between science and religion such
as the immortality offered by Philantor. Tellingly, this immortality is flawed. It
is finite and cannot be spread to everyone. Even if it could, it would be the
death of the Earth, and by extension humanity. Only through belief in God
and ascension to Heaven can true immortality be achieved by and for all
humanity.
The Enlightenment was a time of words. Words can be used to tell
many stories, for good or ill. When we study the Enlightenment most of what
we see are the words of the great thinkers of the period. We see the glory
and triumph of philosophy and science. Its easy to miss that there were
many people in the Enlightenment who did not see it in so positive a light.
Many science fiction writers like Mercier saw greatness in the Enlightenment.
However, this was not a universal trait. For others, like Grainville, it was a
time of sadness and pain. These authors represented their experiences in the
words they chose to record. It is up to us as historians to study and maintain
the full record of this time period, good and ill.

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19

i Robert Darnton, The Forbidden Best-sellers of Pre-revolutionary France. (New York: W.W.
Norton, 1995.), 117.
iiRiikka Forsstrom. Possible worlds: the idea of happiness in the utopian vision of Louis-Sebastien
Mercier. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura. 2002.

iii Amy Ransom, J.. 2014. The First Last Man: Cousin De Grainville's le Dernier Homme.
Science Fiction Studies 41 (2). SF-TH Inc: 31440. doi:10.5621/sciefictstud.41.2.0314.
iv Paul Alkon, (Origins of futuristic fiction. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1987.)
v Paul Alkon, 117.
viJean-Baptiste-Franois-Xavier Cousin De Grainville, I. F. Clarke, and M. Clarke. The Last Man.
Middletown, CT: Wesleyan UP, 2002. Print, XXVI.
viiLouis-Sbastien Mercier and Harriot Augusta Freeman. Astra's Return ; Or, the Halcyon Days
of France in the Year 2440: A Dream. London: Printed for the Translator, 1797. Print, 110-111.
viii Amy Ransom, 14.
ix Mercier and Freeman , Astra's Return ; Or, the Halcyon Days of France in the Year
2440: A Dream, 70.
x Ibid, 77.
xi Ibid, 66.
xii Ibid, 65.
xiii Ibid, 47.
xiv Grainville, Clarke and Clarke, The Last Man, 12.
xv Ibid, 15.
xvi Ibid, 100.
xvii Ibid, 122.

xviii Ibid, 122.

xix Mercier and Freeman, Astra's Return ; Or, the Halcyon Days of France in the Year
2440: A Dream, 11.
xx Ibid, 23.
xxi Ibid, 17.
xxii Ibid, 13.
xxiii Ibid, 28
xxiv Ibid, 77.
xxv Grainville, Clarke and Clarke, The Last Man, 26
xxvi Ibid, 34
xxvii Darnton, The Forbidden Best Sellers of Pre-Revolutionary France, 120.

Works Cited
Primary
Grainville, Jean-Baptiste-Franois-Xavier Cousin De, I. F. Clarke, and M. Clarke. The
Last Man. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan UP, 2002. Print.

Mercier, Louis-Sbastien, and Harriot Augusta. Freeman. Astra's Return ; Or, the
Halcyon Days of France in the Year 2440: A Dream. London: Printed for the
Translator, 1797. Print.
Secondary
#Alkon, Paul K. Origins of futuristic fiction. Athens: University of Georgia Press.
1987.
*Darnton, Robert. The Forbidden Best-sellers of Pre-revolutionary France. New
York: W.W. Norton, 1995.
**Forsstrom, Riikka. Possible worlds: the idea of happiness in the utopian vision of
Louis-Sebastien Mercier. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura. 2002.
#Guthke, Karl S., and ?Helen Atkins. The Last Frontier Imagining Other Worlds,
from the Copernican Revolution to Modern Science Fiction. Ithaca: Cornell
University Press, 1990.
#Marcellesi, Laure. "Louis-Sbastien Mercier: Prophet, Abolitionist, Colonialist."
Studies in Eighteenth-Century Culture 40, no. 1 (2011): 247-273.
https://muse.jhu.edu/ (accessed April 30, 2016).
#Lofficier, Jean-Marc, and Randy Lofficier. French Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror
and Pulp Fiction: A Guide to Cinema, Television, Radio, Animation, Comic
Books and Literature from the Middle Ages to the Present. Jefferson, NC:
McFarland, 2000.
#Ransom, Amy J.. 2014. The First Last Man: Cousin De Grainville's le Dernier
Homme. Science Fiction Studies 41 (2). SF-TH Inc: 31440.
doi:10.5621/sciefictstud.41.2.0314.
*Rosenberg, Daniel. "Louis-Sebastien Mercier's New Words." Eighteenth-Century
Studies 36, no. 3 (2003): 367-386. https://muse.jhu.edu/ (accessed April 30,
2016).
#Sainson, Katia. ""Le Regenerateur de la France": Literary Accounts of Napoleonic
Regeneration 1799-1805." Nineteenth-Century French Studies 30, no. 1
(2001): 9-25. https://muse.jhu.edu/ (accessed April 30, 2016).
KEY:

*: Historian
#: English/Languages (Usually French.)
**: Im fairly certain Riika is history, but I had a hard time tracking much down. However,
based on the foreword for her book, the book itself was her PHD thesis for history.