New York 2140

Devastating climate change has created the underwater New York setting of the novel. Taking place in the years 2140-2143, the novel is a warning to readers of what might happen if people do not act to reverse human overuse of the earth’s natural resources and their refusal to curb use of fossil fuels. In the novel, one climatological disaster leads to another in a domino cascade: the melting ice caps cause the First and Second Pulse, both of which produce irreversible flooding. As a result, humans have limited dry living space, leading to real estate malfeasance like the sabotage of the Met Tower; animals run out of acceptable habitats, leading environmentalist activists and terrorists to fight over solutions like bombing a group of resettled bears; and extreme weather events threaten lives, as when Stefan and Roberto are trapped outside by the hurricane. 

Most of the characters in the novel have character arcs that end happily for them, at least temporarily. But The Citizen makes it clear that this is a temporary state of affairs: “There are no happy endings, because there are no endings!” According to The Citizen, greed will always drive humanity. Positive progress will usually be a response to a catastrophe or a totalitarian regime, not the result of altruism or forward thinking. Every person dies, and every planet will eventually see its end. The ominous specter of global warming is one possible unhappy end for earth’s population. In order for every story to end happily, people would have to be better than they are for long periods of time, which seems unlikely. Instead, history will continue to repeat itself, and history is largely a tale of human error. 

Calls to overthrow unjust systems run through the novel—a theme most explicitly expressed in Mutt and Jeff’s arguments. Jeff’s objections to the financial system, the government’s bailouts of the banks, and the greed of the wealthiest one percent, become monologues against capitalism. Mutt’s responses are not outright rebuttals, but less vitriolic versions of Jeff’s arguments. Both agree that deeply entrenched systems persist as long as those in power can profit from them, and those who enjoy the profits of an unjust system will never abandon it.

Jeff frequently refers to the French Revolution, which led to the death of the monarchy, as the kind of revolt the world needs after the floods. A revolution has to have a spark that ignites the imagination and support of the underclass, and Jeff hopes that his hack of the 16 financial codes will provide that spark. This fails, but Amelia’s speech, along with Franklin and Charlotte’s machinations, lead to the Householders’ Strike and the beginnings of a legitimate revolution.