1996

1996 is the apocalyptic date estimated in a note by Allie Cone, where it marks the end point of a chronology that begins with the creation of the world in 4004 BC. The date appears not as a narrated catastrophe but as a private prediction, which Gibreel Farishta turns into a wry reassurance that the world has not yet run out of time.

The date in Allie’s book

The estimate is written in the flyleaf of Allie Cone’s copy of The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, among marks left by her younger self. The note pairs a creation date of 4004 BC with an estimated apocalypse in 1996, giving the year its significance as the imagined terminus of a long, measured history.

Gibreel’s response

Reading the note aloud, Gibreel Farishta uses the distance between the prediction and the present moment to suggest that time for sensual enjoyment still remains. His teasing response makes 1996 less a confirmed prophecy than a deadline Allie has written into a book—and one that can, for now, be treated lightly.