Everyday Apocalypse (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: apocalyptic mind, apocalyptic expression, The Simpsons, The Matrix, Flannery O'Connor (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"Apocalypse"-as a genre and as a mind-set-is commonly misunderstood, as something hidden in the back of the Bible and characterized by a gnostic or nihilistic disdain for anything earthly or human. So says Dark, a teacher of English at Christ Presbyterian Academy in Nashville, arguing persuasively that genuine apocalypse, informed by Scripture and the rest of biblical tradition, isn't hidden. It can be seen in books and music and on screens large and small. As the first chapter argues, apocalypse isn't primarily about destruction or fortune telling, but about the future pushing into the present, "cracking the pavement of the status quo... announcing a new world of unrealized possibility." The remaining chapters report on what Dark sees as he looks at pop culture through the wide-angle lens of God's ultimate purposes for all of creation. Dark is a close reader not only of pages (Shakespeare and Flannery O'Connor), but tunes (Radiohead and Beck), and film (Truman Show and The Matrix). He is a wide, wise, and good reader, and this book shows him also to be a fine writer - illuminating, engaging, often funny, sometimes disturbing. Familiarity with the cultural phenomena to which he points is helpful, but not necessary. Throughout he helpfully gestures toward others with apocalyptic eyeglasses: poets, theologians, critics, celebrities. If readers allow the book to do its work, they, too, will acquire what he calls "apocalyptic acumen" or "imaginative magnanimity."
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description

The term apocalypse usually evokes images of mass destruction. Our attempts to interpret the apocalyptic language and imagery of the Book of Revelation often take us far afield from our day-to-day existence.

David Dark challenges this removed definition of apocalypse, calling his readers back to the root of the word, which is "revelation." Dark calls us to imagine apocalypse as a more "watchful way of being" in the world. Focusing on the epiphanic quality of apocalyptic insight, Dark draws on the wisdom of popular culture-including The Simpsons, Beck, and Coen brothers' films-to expose the "moral bankruptcy of our imaginations." Ultimately, Dark leads us toward the apocalypse as an affirming yet honest estimation of ourselves and a call to other-centeredness in the here and now.

This engaging book holds enormous appeal for readers interested in the pursuit of everyday spirituality and will delight literary and film critics, as well as anyone seriously interested in popular culture.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Brazos Press (December 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 158743055X
• ISBN-13: 978-1587430558
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #148,158 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hope in Unexpected Places, March 6, 2003

By	Mennonite Medievalist (Bellefonte, PA USA) - See all my reviews

David Dark's book is an encouraging one for Christians, reminding us that an accurate understanding of reality is our birthright---ironically, this 'accurate understanding' consists of apocalypse, or, the irreducibly mysterious hope toward which all reality points. Reading this book refreshes the hope we have in Jesus, even as Dark discusses chiefly non-Christians who, in his view, see apocalypse clearly, since a clear rendering of apocalypse is always commensurate with the mysterious redemptive hope-through-suffering of the cross. It does seem odd that he finds so few Christian artists worth a chapter in his book. Dark revels in the goodness and unexpectedness of reality, and the goodness and unexpectedness of the God it reveals.

Dark concerns himself with contemporary media. Through unusual juxtapositions (Bakhtin on medievalism, Swift, Shakespeare, and Dostoyevsky are quoted in a chapter on the Simpsons), he reminds us that contemporary genres treat truth best when they enter a conversation as old as humankind---a conversation describing the mysteries of redemption, hope, and joy in reality. This looting the wisdom of the ages eliminates a sense of background, brings all truth to the fore----a strategy which accurately depicts the universality of Dark's subject (and the subject of his subjects).

I have some concerns with his claim that authors should confine themselves to mere description of the way things are, avoiding mastery or domination of message and material. The semantic realms of description, interpretation, judgment, and mastery require blurred boundaries, or at least more clearly nuanced ones, to be of any practical use. Writing a book implies some "domination" of a subject, although humility can remove any offense from organisation's claim to authority.

Dark's prose is clear enough and profound, in some places dull, in others quite memorable.

He reads the wise interpreters.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Read!, November 28, 2002

By	S. Hollis - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

David Dark has written a book that will open eyes. Reclaiming the word apocalyptic and taking back its true meaning, his examples of the spiritual in our pop culture are diverse and pertinent. I have already had several good conversations with people about the concepts David brings forth in this book. I highly recommend this book to Christians who want to be in this world, but not of this world.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dense, but rewarding, July 16, 2004

By A Customer

Some reviewers tend to find Dark's prose directionless, but I found quite the opposite to be true. David is certainly a student of the intracacies of prose, and for me that opened up a whole new world of ideas. Reminds me very much of G.K. Chesterton's style. I wonder if Mr. Dark has ready any Chesterton. Given his stunning breadth of knowledge in the written word, I'm sure he has.

Didn't quite understand a sentence? Re-read it carefully to see how each sentence lends itself to the next. Despite its intracacies, this is a book whose message transcends the sum of its parts. Reccomended to anyone who is interested in making the radical assertion that Christ is Lord, and anyone willing to see a truer reflection of what Christ-following and Christian culture should entail, rather than what the mainstream media is willing to depict.

By the way, since when was Flannery O'Connor a pop-culture icon?!