The Chrysalids takes place on the eastern coast of what was once Canada, following the absolute destruction of nuclear war. While this is never explicitly stated in the novel, it is hinted at significantly enough to be assumed. David learns that Waknuk used to be called Labrador and that there is an ocean about 300 miles to the east. He knows little else about the world outside until he starts talking with Uncle Axel, who has sailed around the eastern seaboard and seen the destruction firsthand. Uncle Axel describes the way that Waknuk is surrounded by Fringe lands, followed by Badlands, and then beyond that are forests and fields of unusual and enormous plants. Further still, the land is black and lifeless; this is likely where nuclear bombs were dropped. Uncle Axel notes that if one goes far enough south, people and life exist again as if the bombs created a dead zone that slowly becomes more alive the further away from it a person gets. People who are deemed Blasphemies are sent to live in the Fringes, a land where little grows. Because they are seen as part of God’s punishment, they are condemned to bear the burden of Tribulation in the middle of nowhere.