Abstract

The unprecedented spread of globalization has led to thematic developments in
contemporary British literature and the emergence of authors who reveal a new
cultural identity for the post-millennium. David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas (2004. London:
Sceptre) and Ghostwritten ([1999] 2000. London: Sceptre) question humanity’s progress
and capacity for ethical practices in a globalized world, blurring several literary genres
so as to act as anticipatory allegories for the accelerating present. Mitchell suggests
communal association and socio-cultural engagement are now necessities, in order to
face the challenges of an increasingly interdependent planet which has transnational
connections. And yet, ties are not merely forged between transnational individuals,
but also between humans and clones across temporal and spatial divides, creating a
pragmatic and realizable trans-human future for all. Mitchell’s globe-trotting narratives
will be shown to offer a new planetary form and structure to reflct the convergence
culture of the twenty-fist century, with the transnational narrative strands coalescing
to form a ‘macro-novel’ of communal interconnection, interaction and co-operation,
offering an escape from the ‘broken history’ of the past. This article will therefore
examine and identify how cosmopolitan ideals in twenty-fist century literature offer
a tentative optimism in the face of a fragile and uncertain future