Project Gutenberg 2020-03-31 Public domain in the USA. 126 Cummings, Ray 1887 1957 Cummings, Raymond King King, Ray The Man Who Killed the World The Man Who Killed the Earth Produced from Planet Stories Spring 1940 Listed in magazine table of contents as "The Man Who Killed the Earth." Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "The Man Who Killed the World" by Ray Cummings is a science fiction short story published in the early 20th century. The narrative explores themes of power, fear, and the isolation that accompanies absolute control. The story delves into the psyche of Peter Groff, a man who rules through intimidation and greed, illustrating the moral implications of his quest for dominance over humanity. The plot centers around Peter Groff, the epitome of a tyrant whose power stems from his wealth and the fear he instills in others. As he observes a young couple expressing joy despite their poverty, Groff becomes enraged and determines to unleash a devastating weapon that will annihilate the world's population, seeking to demonstrate the extent of his power. However, when he ultimately achieves his goal of becoming the sole survivor in a world devoid of life, Groff is left to confront the hollowness of his victory and the absence of fear that once defined his existence. The story paints a poignant picture of the emptiness that can accompany unbridled power, leaving Groff haunted by the very humanity he sought to destroy. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 83.2 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Science fiction Short stories Biological weapons -- Fiction PS Text Category: Short Stories Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy 39912 2025-07-24T12:04:15.182308 text/html 16062 2024-10-17T17:10:01 text/html 222527 2025-07-24T12:04:16.919377 application/epub+zip 221366 2025-07-24T12:04:15.671339 application/epub+zip 80064 2025-07-24T12:04:15.391326 application/epub+zip 255212 2025-07-24T12:04:18.013313 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 248309 2025-07-24T12:04:16.698353 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 107185 2022-09-27T21:41:42.806876 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 33914 2025-07-24T12:04:15.096328 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 14070 2024-10-17T17:10:01 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 16840 2025-07-24T12:04:18.149307 application/rdf+xml 40408 2025-07-24T12:04:15.479317 image/jpeg 5913 2025-07-24T12:04:15.434354 image/jpeg 478918 2025-07-24T12:04:15.193357 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia