When We Cease to Understand the World

When We Cease to Understand the World is a work of historical fiction by Chilean writer Benjamín Labatut. Written as a series of five interlinked essay-style chapters, the book analyzes the toll scientific progress takes on the world and on scientists themselves. It describes the experiences of the scientists whose discoveries contributed to the development of the destructive weapons of modernity, such as mustard gas and the atom bomb. Benjamín Labatut writes in Spanish and won multiple awards for his first collection of short stories, La Antártica Empieza Aquí (Antarctica Starts Here). His first novel, Después de la Luz (After the Light), deals with similar themes of scientific discovery, genius, and “madness” in an unconventional narrative structure.

When We Cease to Understand the World is the winner of the English PEN Award and was shortlisted for the 2021 International Booker Prize.

When We Cease to Understand the World was first published in Spanish in 2019 by Anagrama under the title Un Verdor Terrible. This study guide uses the Adrian Nathan West English paperback translation published in 2021 by Pushkin Press.

Content Warning: This guide describes and discusses the source text’s treatment of death by suicide, mental health conditions, antisemitic violence, pedophilia, and sexual assault.