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On the one hand, it is ironic that the Overlords look like devils, since they effectively take up the role of guardian angels—they step in to stop humanity from destroying itself with nuclear weapons or latent psychic abilities, and they miraculously intervene to rescue Jeffrey from the tsunami.
The original concept behind the Overlords, in the short story, was not that they were shepherds for the human race. The point of "Guardian Angel" was simply the irony of having these beneficial aliens turn out to look exactly like our conception of the devil.
When the Overlords finally reveal their appearance, they resemble the traditional Christian folk images of demons, with cloven hooves, leathery wings, horns, and barbed tails. Humankind enters a golden age of prosperity at the expense of creativity.
“The Golden Age” begins with that revelation: The Overlords look like devils. Karellen initially invites two children into his ship and emerges with one on either arm. When viewed closely, the Overlords appear less humanoid than devils are typically portrayed, but they seem to be the inspiration for the legends of devils and demons in ...
- Knowledge, Technology and Power
- The Problems of Utopian Society
- The Purpose of Humanity
In much of his fiction, Arthur C. Clarke supports the idea that knowledge, particularly knowledge of technology, equals power—and not just physical power, but psychological power as well. One of Clarke's three "Laws" is the idea that "any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." In Childhood's End,the Overlords use their t...
While the main concepts of Childhood's Endrevolve around the irony of the Overlords as benevolent masters that look like "devils" and the division between technological and evolutionary achievement, the book also deals heavily with the possible problems of a utopian society. Before we are even aware that the Overlords have started making beneficial...
Several of Clarke's novels tackle the big questions of the meaning of human existence. Much like 2001: A Space Odyssey, Childhood's End tries to find a purpose for humanity by putting it against a backdrop of alien intelligence. Clarke has often said that he believes humanity is meant to reach out into space and explore the stars. However, in Child...
Rashaverak cannot offer many answers to Jan, but he does reveal one thing: why the Overlords look so much like the Devil. The reason is not, as many humans had guessed, that the Overlords had visited Earth in the past.
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The Overlords fit the description of the devils and demons of myth perfectly. They aren't supernatural creatures, though—instead, their existence can be accounted for by completely natural processes, such as evolution.
