Paradis-planeten

by James Blish

Paperback, 1969

Status

Available

Call number

813.54

Genres

Science Fiction

All Topics

Fiction

Collection

Danish paperback sf

Publication

[Kbh.] Steen Hasselbalch (1969) 217 s.

Description

Father Ramon Ruiz-Sanchez S.J., is a part of a four man scientific commission to the planet Lithia, there to study a harmonious society of aliens living on a planets which is a biologist's paradise. He soon finds himself troubled: how can these perfect beings, living in an apparent Eden, have no conception of sin or God? If such a sinless Eden has been created apart from God, then who is responsible?

User reviews

LibraryThing member Stevil2001

Space Jesuits! How could I not want a book like this? A Case of Conscience tells the tale of a Jesuit biologist on a survey mission to chart the first planet with intelligent life... and the consequences that a species seemingly without religion or sin has for his faith. I liked the beginning of

the book a lot, though I think a weirdly large amount of time is spent on the question of developing the planet's resources compared to the amount actually centered on the religious debate. There's also a plot point that depends on the discredited (even then!) notion of recapitulation. But the core dilemma is strong and interesting, and Father Ruiz-Sanchez's necessary leap of heresy is well-portrayed. The second half of the book is much less interesting; Blish introduces these notions of a "Shelter economy" halfway through, and they jar, and the Lithian egg who becomes a television personality is dull and very 1950s. The climax of the novel, though, brings the whole thing back together satisfactorily.

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LibraryThing member kvrfan

I REALLY did not like this book. Recognizing that it was something of a fable, I could accept such characteristics as the characters being no more than "types." What I couldn't abide was that it had a pre-Copernican moral sense about it, in that it carried an attitude all in the universe was

created for the purpose of earthlings (and I'd narrow it down more finely to that, to Christian earthlings).

A group of Earth scientists spends time evaluating an inhabited planet 50 light-years away. Since the planet lacks iron, its technology has been prevented from becoming too sophisticated, but what is evident is that its culture is very well-integrated and peaceful. It displays little distrust and is even welcoming and accepting of the Earth visitors. So polite is everyone that one of the scientists who is also a Jesuit likens it to Eden.

But therein, he argues to his colleagues, lies the trap. Such a seductive culture could only be the product of Satan.

Say what?!

The Jesuit provides an argument on the basis of natural law--at least the theology of natural law as laid down by the medieval clerics--but this then presupposes that all in the universe exists (and God created it) only to conform to a specifically Earth/medieval Christian understanding of how the universe works. The Jesuit-scientist is obviously a Jesuit first and a scientist only distantly second, because rather than taking the data from his new experience with this gentle society to reconsider his dogma, he feels he must judge the situation according to his ingrained dogmatic position.

And the dogma is just crazy. What a wonderful society these other beings have! Of course, it must be the Devil's work! The logical contortions that must be taken reach this conclusion probably do conform to pre-Vatican II Catholic theology (the book was written in 1957). But that only indicates how contorted such theology was.

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LibraryThing member jpers36

An excellent study of the relationship between science and the supernatural, in the same vein as The Exorcism of Emily Rose, although this obviously came well before that film. When an event has a scientific explanation, does that negate the possibility that the event was brought about through

supernatural means? What of the case where the event was unpredictable in a natural sense, but supernaturally predicted?

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LibraryThing member write-review

What Is the Nature of Evil?

Can there be morality, equanimity, and unity with nature without God? Can these be innate traits in sentient beings like humans? Is there evil and if so, is it more Catholic/Augustinian, that is, succinctly, a free will choice, or Manichean, in other words, evil as an

entity in opposition to God? Weighty questions, indeed, but these are concepts James Blish and his protagonist Father Ramon Ruiz-Sanchez address in A Case of Conscience, when Earth of the future (2049) encounters Lithia, a planet 50 million light years distant, where the predominant reptilian species lives in perfect harmony with itself and its world.

The novel, which won the 1958 Hugo and a Retrospective Hugo Award in 2004, opens with a commission of U.N. (the one-world governing body on Earth) representatives, on the eve of deciding whether Lithia should be open for interaction with Earth. The four persons of the commission each have different thoughts on the matter, with the two dominant being those of Cleaver, a physicist, and Ruiz-Sanchez, a biologist and Jesuit. Because the planet is rich in pegmatite (a source of lithium, rare on Earth, used in nuclear weapons) and he has little knowledge of or interest in Lithian culture, Cleaver votes to use the planet as a factory for building a nuclear arsenal, regardless of what the Lithians think. Ruiz-Sanchez strongly argues that the planet must be closed and off limits to humanity because it is an innately moral, peaceful, and balanced society. His reasoning centers on his Catholicism; that Lithia’s very nature is inimical to Church teachings and the morality of humanity. How can a society live in perfection, akin in so many ways to Eden before the fall, without the seeming handiwork of God, and without humanity exercising free will to strive for perfection. In his opinion, Satan created Lithia to separate humanity from God (here, think about the Augustinian concept of Evil as degrees of separation from God and the duality espoused by Mani). When the commission leaves, Chtexa, whom Ruiz-Sanchez has befriended, presents him with a gift, an amphora containing his offspring.

Back on Earth, two things develop. The offspring, named Egtverchi, grows rapidly to adolescence. Divorced from his traditional upbringing, Egtverchi grows into a questioning and rebellious youth, a charismatic being who captures the imagination of a discontented world, a world that has evolved into one that mostly lives underground. This Shelter economy began during the days when fear of nuclear annihilation drove nations to dig vast cities deep into the earth then transformed into the normal way of existence. Egtverchi campaigns actively against this existence and the very nature of authority. Turmoil and riots ensure and to avoid capture by authorities, Egtverchi manages to escape to Lithia. For Ruiz-Sanchez, this goes to the very heart of his concern, his reluctant embracing of the Manichean view of evil and God, a concern that forces his excommunication from the church and a mandate from the Pope to make things right by exorcising the entire planet of Lithia, thus demonstrating the superior power of God over evil; in other words, a disavowal of dualism.

Concomitant with these developments, secretly Cleaver has been authorized to begin building nuclear weapons on Lithia, an endeavor under full stream as Earth descends into strife and Ruiz-Sanchez sets about obeying the Pope’s directive. Suspected by some but unknown to Cleaver, the physicist has made an error in his calculations, a potentially fatal one that could set off a chain reaction that could destroy all of Lithia. At the very moment of Cleaver is starting his nuclear reactors that will be used to construct atomic weapons, Ruiz-Sanchez performs his exorcism, and Lithia blows up. Rational minds will attribute the destruction to Cleaver’s error, but others will believe it is the power of God to expel evil.

Thoughtful readers of all genres will find A Case of Conscience a rewarding experience not the least for the religious/philosophical questions it gives rise to.

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LibraryThing member baswood

This was the next book in my chronological reading of the SF Masterwork series and it took me by surprise. A few years ago I had read Blish's [Cities in Flight] series which had been aimed squarely at the youth pulp market, however the more thoughtful [A Case of Conscience] (1958) with its slow

moving first part would have tested the resolve of many of those teen readers. Blish is not a writer to let science get in the way of his ideas and as this book moves along the science gets left behind. The two parts to the novel make for an uneven read, especially as the faster moving second section is in danger of leaving his readers scrambling to keep up, but it is satisfactorily if unsurprisingly resolved by the end.

In the first part four specialists are working on an inhabited planet with the task of deciding whether it can be opened up for human contact. Father Ruiz-Sanchez; one of the four is a biologist, but also a Jesuit priest and the arguments as to the suitability of the planet Lithia is told very much from his point of view. The giant race of Lithians are bipedal reptile like creatures with great intelligence and their society is everything that a Christian might wish to see: a veritable Utopia with no crime, no conflict, no ignorance and no wants, a world built on peace, logic and understanding of the natural world the only problem is: a complete absence of anything resembling a God. The planet also has an abundance of materials needed to fashion atomic bombs. The four specialists were not able to reach a conclusion with Father Ruiz-Sanchez convinced that the planet is the Devil's work. As the team are leaving the planet Ruiz-Sanchez is given a fertilised egg by one of the Lithians. The second part of the novel tells the story of the birth and development of the Lithian back on earth.

The mystery of the Lithian society and the arguments between the specialists and the challenge to the faith of Father Ruiz-Sanchez are well set out in the first part, along with an atmospheric description of the rain soaked planet. Blish manages to hold the readers interest: rehearsing his arguments that hold both mystery and wonder even if the Jesuit's thought processes can take some surprising turns. While the first part is thoughtful and assumes some knowledge of literature and religion, the second part hardly stops to take a breath. Somehow Blish makes it all work and I can see why his book has its admirers in the science fiction genre. 3.5 stars.

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LibraryThing member clong

I found things to like about this celebrated and ambitious books, especially in its first half. It gives us characters, aliens, planetary ecology, and future Earth, which are all intriguing and reasonably plausible. It gives us an eerie prediction of something horribly similar to reality

television. It gives us serious questions about science and religion, clearly written in a cold war setting in which scientists dig deep into things they don’t understand and said things ultimately go boom in unanticipated and hazardous ways.

Having said all that, the second half of the book thoroughly failed to deliver on the promise of the beginning. The inherently interesting above-mentioned things spiral out of control in generally superficial ways, and in the end we’re left with something about as profound as a reasonably decent Star Trek episode. Engtverchi’s saga initially offered much promise but quickly degenerated into silliness. Similarly, I found Father Ruiz-Sanchez’ struggles to reconcile his faith with (alien) reality compelling, but as this storyline moved towards its final resolution it became increasingly juvenile. The climactic lunar scene felt like something out of a comic book.

To the extent this book has a message it has to be something like “75% of even the best of humanity is screwed up in irredeemable ways” (of the original quartet of explorers only Michelis remains sympathetic and admirable). And perhaps that people who put faith ahead of common sense should be excluded from space exploration teams.

All in all, the first half of this book is clearly a huge step forward from the last thing I read by Blish (the “Cities in Flight” tetrology). But while I admired the questions asked by this book, I found the answers awfully disappointing.

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LibraryThing member tottman

Very interesting look at the future, from a late 1950's, early 1960's perspective. The heart of the book is a moral crisis introduced by an alien race with perfect morals but no belief in a god. Also interesting to look at as a first contact novel from a time that was less xenophobic and more

nuclear disaster preoccupied.

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LibraryThing member James_Knupp

A solid and interesting first half is seriously weakened by a disjointed second half whose flow makes little sense, and whose ending leaves much to be desired. This is easier to understand when you learn that "A Case of Conscience" was originally a novella expanded into a novel later on. The first

half of the book, the much stronger half, stands on its own as a interesting look at how three vastly different perspectives can interpret evidence that contradicts all existing presuppositions. The second half drags into theological debate and the inconsistencies inherent in Catholic dogma set over top a vague background of social unrest about inequality. While several of this book's weak points can be attributed to the age of the book (62 years at the time this review was written), they cannot all be explained away by mere circumstance of time.

The first half of the book sees 4 scientists sent to observe and study an alien world to determine if it is fit for human development and/or colonization. 3 of the scientists all reach different conclusions with vastly different implications, while the fourth listens to be swayed to one side. The debate does drag a bit as it is written very much in the style of a lot of science fiction writing from the 1950s and 1960s: long speeches from "men of intellect" who will break down their every argument into small bits so that even the most inexperienced reader can understand the ultimate conclusions. While that may be helpful for developing the arguments in the book, it does get burdensome to read page after page of philosophical/ethical/theological debate with little break for story or character development through action.

The arguments made are at least interesting to see discussed. While ultimately, Father Ruiz-Sanchez's theological argument becomes the focus of the remainder of the book, Michaelis's argument is the far more interesting one to myself and I suspect most modern readers. His arguments remain relevant today to discussions of de-colonial attitudes and efforts, examinations of the role of force in development and cultural/technological advancement, and the insistence on Western views of "progress" being the only valid measure of civilization.

The geologist Cleaver's ultimate argument reflects many of the attitudes prevalent in the Cold War era in which Blish wrote the novel. The ideas of an arms race remains his most steadfast conviction, even against a people who have no concept of war or weapons. As well, in an era in which many of the European colonies were gaining independence, Cleaver revives old colonial tropes and attitudes, much to the horror of most (I would hope) modern readers. While his arguments remain quite unpersuasive today, they serve as an excellent examination of the danger of colonial attitudes should mankind ever take to the stars for the purposes of expansion.

The second half of the book attempts to do some world building for the far off future of 2050, but it remains vague and unconvincing as a dystopian vision. The idea of social inequity is attempted to be presented as a major brewing crisis, but it never feels like a real danger until the moment is has to erupt to move the plot along. The provocateur of this social unrest comes across as entirely unbelievable at being a charismatic messiah to the masses, instead seeming aloof and entitled/condescending. His being of another world is used to reflect a mirror back onto human society, but it doesn't have the contrast that I think Blish hoped for.

Perhaps it is simply that this book comes from another era with themes and styles that aren't evergreen, but I do find this book to be the weakest of the Hugo Best Novel winners I have read so far.

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LibraryThing member StigE

This is not literature, this is incomprehensible theology. This does not make sense.

LibraryThing member igor.kh

This novel consists of two parts. The first was originally a stand alone novella. In it, a Jesuit priest, faced with a highly rational, intelligent, alien species, tries to decide whether they are endowed with souls. The second part was tacked on to extend the novella to a novel. There, an

offspring of the same alien race grows up on earth, without contact with his own planet. The fact that he, Egtverchi, is an alien no longer matters, as the main focus becomes the dystopian society created by unintended consequences of the nuclear arms race. Egtverchi serves as the lightning rod for society's discontent.

The main theme of the first part, and the only substantial thread connecting it to the second is the priest's point of view. He is a trained biologist and is faced with the same empirical data as three other scientists exploring the alien planet. Yet, his judgment is perpetually colored by the need to attribute creation to divine origins. As a consequence, he sees evil and danger to humanity where his colleagues see potential peaceful and mutually beneficial coexistence. In short, it reads as a very interesting exercise in a personal rationalization of the all too common conclusion that different is bad. I give it a thumbs up.

The second part of the novel is much less remarkable. It is one of many extrapolations of the harm that the cold war mentality and policies can lead to in the future. Unfortunately, the writing and characterizations fall flat on their faces compared to the preceding half of the book. Unfortunately, I must give it a thumbs down.

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LibraryThing member mareki

A very original novel that uses the sci-fi to ask unashamedly big questions about religion & ethics. At times the level of scientific & theological learning can be so expert it is bewildering & can loose the reader.
feb 08

LibraryThing member aarondesk

An apparent Eden is discovered and a group of scientists and a priest must come to grips with it. A good book with some thought-provoking ideas.

LibraryThing member bcquinnsmom

After reading this book I went to look at reviews and discovered why I was so confused while reading this: it seemed really sort of choppy and disjointed until I found out that this was actually 2 smaller novels in one. The first book centers on the character of Father Ramon Ruiz-Sanchez, a Jesuit

priest who is part of a mission to investigate a planet called Lithia. The inhabitants of Lithia are lizardish-type aliens. They live in peace among each other, with no war, no crime, no dissension, because they live according to the principle of reason. If things don't make sense, they simply aren't done. Ruiz-Sanchez is there with 3 others who are trying to determine if Lithia should be open to inhabitants of earth. The first book is outstanding: Ruiz-Sanchez makes what he feels is a startling discovery about the population and for that he is excommunicated from the church. I won't say what, but you'll love this part of the story. On leaving Lithia, the team is given a present: one of the aliens sends the egg of his son with them to Earth. The second book focuses on the alien Egtverchi, who is born on Earth and grows up away from his culture. He has no instinctive understanding of the reason that guides his native culture, and as time progresses, becomes somewhat of a celebrity. I won't say more about this either, but suffice it to say, the book does give you a lot to think about.

I loved the first part of this book, but the second part (which is also good, don't get me wrong) is not as nicely formulated and gets a little confusing at times. I definitely recommend it to all readers of sci-fi as a no-miss read.

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LibraryThing member dragonb

Pretty good. I enjoyed the first half of the book more than the second half. The planet was interesting, the biology, etc.
The religious discussions my be more interesting to Catholics. While I didn't have any objections to it, I just found it a little boring at that point.

LibraryThing member comfypants

The quality of the prose is quite good, but there are some major problems with the story structure. The book has two parts. The first is a lengthy short story, and is excellent. Four scientists, one of whom also happens to be a Jesuit, study an alien planet and the culture of its people, with the

goal of deciding whether humans would be harmful to the planet (or vice versa). The second part is an extension of that story, and is kind of a mess. It's more like a sequel than the continuation you'd expect from the second half of a novel. It abandons the focus of the first part, and on top of that it has very little focus of its own.

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LibraryThing member Razinha

I saw this on a sci-fi "must read" list, and thinking, "I liked Blish when I was a teen...", gave it a shot.

Well....I can overlook a lot as it was published in 1958, but I had a few problems with an early main character slurring the primary species of the other planet...dates the vision to a racist

U.S. ...; the story was uneven (and a very weird segment in part two was just...weird); the end sections all over the map; a character who should have known better using "light-year" as a unit of time (not sure that Blish did that deliberately, but if so, it didn't fit with the character); and the religious element just seemed silly, to put a finger on a few. And the ending far too contrived for the intelligent writer I thought I remembered.

I've wanted to re-read The Seedling Stars for some time, but I'm afraid a 40 year old memory fragment might disappoint me. I can't recommend this book, even taking its age into consideration.

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LibraryThing member WingedWolf

This was a fascinating novel about an alien species with a remarkable life-history, spoiled by a cop-out ending that catered to religious concepts.

LibraryThing member gypsysmom

Winner of the Hugo Award in 1958, this book presents a moral dilemma confronting the four main characters.

LibraryThing member languagehat

The classic sf religious novel (along with A Canticle for Leibowitz).

LibraryThing member kristykay22

While there is a lot to like in this theological science fiction novel from the late 1950s, I ultimately found it a bit of a slog. Blish starts us off on Lithia, a far-off planet inhabited by very large sentient lizard-like creatures that have a perfectly moral, crime-free society and yet no

religion at all. The scientists from Earth that have been sent to review the planet for future exploration include biologist / Jesuit priest Ramon Ruiz-Sanchez. He is fascinated by the biology and sociology of this new world but has a break in his admiration for the planet when he is struck by the belief that the planet was created by Satan as a lure for humanity to turn away from the grace of God. I think. Honestly, the theological parts lost me a bit (sorry, Seminary friends!). When the men get ready to go back to Earth, one of the Lithians that Ruiz-Sanchez has befriended gives him a baby Lithian in a jar to raise on Earth. As this Lithian grows up severed from the moral compass of his home planet, he absorbs all the weird energy of an Earth that has retreated to an elaborate series of underground bunkers in fear of nuclear war, a decadent society of ultra-rich folks, and a growing number of viscerally discontented workers. Things come to a head when the young Lithian uses his charismatic popularity to call his discontented followers into an open rebellion against the government, ultimately leading to a rather neat solution to Father Ruiz-Sanchez's dilemma (and impending excommunication).

The best parts of this book are definitely the descriptions of Lithia and the extremely detailed exploration of the unique biology of the planet. The worst parts are the cringingly racist and sexist descriptions of the Asian scientist who helps raise the baby Lithian, and the Trump / Q-like influence of the Lithian on this future Earth (I just didn't have the energy for that -- ymmv). In between are the religious factors, which may or may not be your jam depending on how philosophical, theological, or Catholic you are. And if you know what Manichaeism is without having to look it up.

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LibraryThing member write-review

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LibraryThing member ivanfranko

Readable, intelligent piece of sci-fi which introduces Manichean concepts into the story. The author shows serious scientific knowledge and a familiarity with Catholic theology.

LibraryThing member brakketh

Justified in the praise for this novel, dated but a hugely enjoyable exploration of the impact of alien contact.

LibraryThing member DinadansFriend

A novel in which a Jesuit confronts a planet without any belief in any deity. He's finally forced by his Catholicism to cast an exorcism, which may have destroyed it. While he has qualms, he conforms to his order's rules. It passes an evening, and isn't comforting to Catholics.

Fewer

Subjects

83.8 II

Awards

Hugo Award (Nominee — Novel — 1959)

British Science Fiction Association Award (Shortlist — BSFA Fiftieth Anniversary Award - Best Novel of 1958)

Locus All-Time Best (28 — 1975)

David Pringle's Best 100 Science Fiction Novels (26)

Bloomsbury 100 Must-Read Science Fiction Novels

Language

Danish

Original language

English

Original publication date

1958

Physical description

217 p.; 18.5 cm

Local notes

Omslag: Frithioff Johansen
Omslaget viser en mand og et stort firben
Indskannet omslag - N650U - 150 dpi
Oversat fra amerikansk "A case of conscience" af Jannick Storm
Paradisplaneten