A Look at the Value of Dystopian Fiction as Cautionary Lessons This Memorial Day

Final Blackout, by L. Ron Hubbard, is recognized as a forerunner of dystopian fiction, providing cautinary lessons for Memorial Day.

LOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, May 19, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- As we approach Memorial Day, we recognize the sacrifices many have made to guarantee our continued freedom as a country. It also provides a time to reflect and look at alternate futures that could have been if not for the dedication of our armed forces. L. Ron Hubbard penned “Final Blackout” as a three-part novel, which was published in the April - June 1940 issues of Astounding Science Fiction and became one of the most influential military science fiction works of the twentieth century.

Science fiction is a very special genre of fiction. Its value is often as a cautionary tale, posing what-if questions with their potential outcomes. “Final Blackout” is one such case and was considered by Robert A. Heinlein “As perfect a piece of science fiction as has ever been written,” penned as it was well before any of the horrors of WWII ... yet predicting much of what transpired and even more of what could have come to pass.\

The novel’s lasting appeal lies in its timeless themes of sacrifice, resilience, and the human spirit. Themes as relevant today as when first written 85 years ago. Hubbard served as a Lieutenant in the US Navy and, as a World War II veteran, was familiar with war and its oft-required ultimate sacrifice. And so, when “Final Blackout” was republished as a novel in 1948‒after the completion of WWII‒ Hubbard added the following dedication, “To the men and officers with whom I served in World War II, first phase, 1941-1945.” And in the 1948 newly written Preface, Hubbard opens with, “When FINAL BLACKOUT was written there was still a Maginot Line, Dunkirk was just another French coastal town and the Battle of Britain, the Bulge, Saipan, Iwo, V2s, and Nagasaki were things unknown and far ahead in history.” [Click here to read the Preface in full.]

Interestingly enough, science fiction thriller author A.G. Riddle (“Atlantis Gene”) wrote, “Before dystopian fiction became a genre unto itself, ‘Final Blackout’ set the standard. Hubbard’s grim vision of a war-ravaged Europe remains as powerful and cautionary as when it first stunned readers decades ago.”

Before becoming an international bestselling science fiction author, Craig Martelle (“Battleship Leviathan”) spent over two decades as a US Marine, retiring as a Major. He wrote, “Who has a soldier’s best interest at heart? Who can protect them from the machinations of the political class? The Lieutenant is born into the role fighting through a dystopian world, taking unto himself the hardest task of all with the cold logic of military precision.”

The Lieutenant, the central figure of Final Blackout, states as he meets with a delegation from the United States attempting to seize control of additional lands as the World War continues in a dystopian future, “I am neither a politician nor a statesman; I am a soldier. I know nothing of the chicanery which goes by the name of diplomacy. But I learned long ago that there is only one way to rule, and that is for the good of all.”

What makes Memorial Day so important is its recognition of duty, honor, courage, and sacrifice. “Final Blackout” recognizes these principles while also making it clear what life would be like if we didn’t have those individuals who made the right choice to protect their ideals and their country.

Learn more about Lt. L. Ron Hubbard by visiting www.LRonHubbard.org/timeline/a-splendid-ships-crew.html

John Goodwin
Galaxy Press
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