Frank Herbert, author of Dune, said, "The function of science fiction is not always to predict the future but sometimes to prevent it.” Discuss this quote in relation to Alas, Babylon. Find specific parts in the book that support or enlarge your thoughts.

Alas, Babylon tells the story of what would have happened if the Cold War did result in a nuclear attack, set entirely in the small town of Fort Repose, Florida, which is based on the real city of Mount Dora, Florida. The novel was published in 1959, making it one of the first apocalyptic novels of the nuclear age.

Nuclear War would be devastating not just to the countries involved but to the world as a whole. It continues to be a threat, as more and more countries attain nuclear weapons. Alas Babylon speaks to this, warning its readers of what can and will happen if nuclear war ensues.

"You see, all their lives, ever since they've known anything, they've lived under the shadow of war—atomic war. For them the abnormal has become normal. All their lives they have heard nothing else, and they expect it."

“...The struggle was not against a human enemy, or for victory. The struggle, for those who survived "The Day", was to survive the next.”