After London · Chapters

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Chapter companions for After London by Richard Jefferies.

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Chapter 1
Part I: The Relapse Into Barbarism
The chapter depicts the collapse of civilization and the return to a primitive state, where society has broken down and people must adapt to a harsh, lawless world.
Chapter 2
The Great Forest
This chapter describes the gradual transformation of the English countryside into an immense forest after the collapse of civilization. Over thirty years, fields, roads, and villages are overrun by brambles, briars, and trees; marshes form; and the landscape becomes impassable except by animal tracks. The chapter also details the explosion of mice and rat populations, the subsequent increase in predators like weasels, hawks, and foxes, and the feralization of cats and dogs, leading to new wild species.
Chapter 3
Wild Animals
This chapter catalogs the wild animals that now roam the forests and fields after the collapse of civilization. It describes the various species of wild cattle, pigs, sheep, and horses, noting their origins from domesticated animals of the ancients, their behaviors, and their interactions with humans. The chapter also mentions the disappearance of exotic menagerie animals and the survival of beavers and some aquatic birds.
Chapter 4
Men of the Woods
The narrator reflects on the difficulty of ascertaining historical truth after the collapse, as records were destroyed and traditions conflict. Various theories for the depopulation are presented: silting of ports, food shortages, a magnetic shift, or divine punishment. The lower and rural classes were left behind, and society quickly fell into barbarism. The chapter then describes the two main groups of 'men of the woods': the Bushmen, degraded wanderers who live by hunting and theft, and the gipsies (Romany), who maintain tribal organization, magic, and strict routes.
Chapter 5
IV: The Invaders
This chapter provides a detailed account of the social and political structure of the post-apocalyptic world, focusing on the rise of a noble class that hoards literacy and knowledge, the corruption and instability of city-states around the great lake, the constant threat from northern invaders (Irish, Welsh, Scots), and the brutal system of enslavement for minor offenses that keeps the majority in bondage.

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Part I: The Relapse Into Barbarism

The Great Forest

Wild Animals

Men of the Woods

IV: The Invaders