Rushing to Paradise (1994) is in many ways a typical Ballard novel, returning to the insular settings of Concrete Island (1974) and High Rise (1975), while at the same time foreshadowing the decadent worlds of Millennium People (2003) and Kingdom Come (2006). Most of the plot takes place in an isolated microcosm: the uninhabited Pacific island Saint-Esprit which, after being targeted by the French government for nuclear tests, is taken over by the radical animal activist Dr Barbara Rafferty under the pretence of saving a species of indigenous albatross from extinction. Yet this compassionate aim is gradually abandoned and the paradisiacal setting transformed into a totalitarian feminist commune ruled with brutal authority by Rafferty. The novel illustrates Ballard’s enduring fascination with processes of decivilisation, social decline and the seductions of power, notably by accentuating the...
1356 words
Citation: Mueller-Wood, Anja. "Rushing to Paradise". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 19 July 2011 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=2275, accessed 09 June 2026.]
