''The Possibility of an Island'' (french: La Possibilité d'une île) is a 2005 novel by
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
novelist
Michel Houellebecq
Michel Houellebecq (; born Michel Thomas, 26 February 1956 or 1958) is a French author, known for his novels, poems and essays, as well as an occasional actor, filmmaker and singer.
His first book was a biographical essay on the horror writer ...
, set within a
cloning
Cloning is the process of producing individual organisms with identical or virtually identical DNA, either by natural or artificial means. In nature, some organisms produce clones through asexual reproduction. In the field of biotechnology, c ...
cult that resembles the real-world
Raëlians.
[Worton, Michael ''A dog's life (poodles excepted)'' in ]The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...
Saturday October 29, 200
available online
"In The Possibility of an Island he once again addresses big ideas, but without giving them big thought or attention. This time the main subjects are mankind's desire for immortality, as made possible by cloning, and, again, human love. ..He finally discovers a sect, the Elohimites, .The Elohimites are based on the Raelians"
Plot summary
There are three main characters - Daniel and two of his clones.
Daniel is a successful comedian who can't seem to enjoy life despite his wealth. He gets bored with his hedonist lifestyle, but can't escape from it either. In the meanwhile he is disgruntled with the state of current society, and philosophizes about the nature of sex and love.
His two clones live an uneventful life as hermits, in a post-apocalyptic future. They live in a time where the human species is on its last legs (or, alternatively, on its first legs, as they have returned to societies of hunter-gatherer tribes), destroyed by climate change and nuclear war. The two clones are confronted with the life of the first Daniel and have different views about their predecessor. Scattered around are the remnants of tourist resorts, cities and consumer items and some natural humans living in small tribes without any knowledge of the past or of civilization.
Related media
*A film based on the novel, ''
La Possibilité d'une île'', premiered in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
on September 10, 2008. The film was directed by Houellebecq himself.
*An excerpt from the novel is featured on the music album ''
Comme si de rien n'était'' by
(track 2).
*In 2009,
Iggy Pop
James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the " Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band The Stooges, who w ...
released the music album ''
Préliminaires'', which was based on the novel.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Possibility Of An Island, The
2005 French novels
2005 science fiction novels
Novels by Michel Houellebecq
French science fiction novels
Fictional cults
Novels about cloning
French novels adapted into films