Book Review: Out of the Silent Planet by C. S. Lewis

Out of the Silent Planet by C. S. Lewis

Doctor Ransom is on a walking holiday in the English countryside when he gets kidnapped by Weston and Devine, two scientists working on a secret project. Ransom gets knocked out. When he wakes up, he's in a ship hurtling through space. The scientists are taking him to an undisclosed location where they will offer him up as a sacrifice to the locals. But they claim their intentions are noble, because they seek the gold on the planet and they plan for humanity to move to that planet when the Earth becomes uninhabitable. Humanity must exist forever, after all. When they get to the planet (called Malacandra by the locals), Ransom manages to escape. He's befriended by local horse-like intelligent creatures called hrossi. He learns the local language and some of the culture before he is summoned to Oyarsa, the leader of the planet, with some surprising results.

The book makes a fine adventure story, even if it is scientifically inaccurate. Since Lewis is the author, he clearly has more interest in allegorical intentions than scientific explanations. The planet is populated with three intelligent species who all get along just fine. There's no racism or speciesism, just a natural appreciation of the diverse talents of the diverse species. The planet has a certain utopian peacefulness. A fourth race of angelic-like creatures is introduced, though they are not natives to the planet--their home is the heavens, of which the planet is just one spot. They are not the ultimate authority or creators of this world, they acknowledge Maleldil as the Supreme Being (a fairly clear reference to the Judeo-Christian God). The book ends with a confrontation where Weston tries to justify his rapacious attitude toward Malacandra with some fine rhetoric. He doesn't really know the local language, so Ransom has to translate his fancy speech into plain words, a clever way that Lewis shows how venal and self-serving Weston's attitude is.

This book is the first of a series of three adventures known as the Space Trilogy. A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast has reviewed this book and will review the others (Perelandra and That Hideous Strength) in the coming months.

Highly recommended, as long as you can make allowances for the out-of-date science in this science fiction.