Across The Zodiac
Encyclopedia
Across the Zodiac: The Story of a Wrecked Record (1880
) is a science fiction
novel by Percy Greg
, who has been credited as an originator of the Sword and planet
sub-genre of science fiction.
, a form of anti-gravitational energy, and details a flight to Mars
in 1830. The planet is inhabited by diminutive beings; they are convinced that life does not exist elsewhere than on their world, and refuse to believe that the unnamed narrator is actually from Earth. (They think he's an unusually tall Martian from some remote place on their planet.)
The book's narrator names his spacecraft the "Astronaut."
in any work of fiction.
). Pallander copied some elements of Greg's plot; in his book, gravity is negated by a gyroscope
.
Greg's book had a clear influence on another science fiction novel of its era, The Great Romance
.
1880 in literature
The year 1880 in literature involved some significant new books.-New books:*Henry Adams - Democracy: An American Novel *Rhoda Broughton - Second Thoughts*Wilkie Collins - Jezebel's Daughter...
) is a science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel by Percy Greg
Percy Greg
Percy Greg , son of William Rathbone Greg, was an English writer....
, who has been credited as an originator of the Sword and planet
Sword and planet
Sword and Planet is a subgenre of science fantasy that features rousing adventure stories set on other planets, and usually featuring Earthmen as protagonists. The name derives from the heroes of the genre engaging their adversaries in hand to hand combat primarily with simple melee weapons such as...
sub-genre of science fiction.
Plot
The book details the creation and use of apergyApergy
Apergy is a fictitious form of anti-gravitational energy described by Percy Greg in his sword and planet novel Across the Zodiac.It is also used by John Jacob Astor IV in his 1894 science fiction novel, A Journey in Other Worlds....
, a form of anti-gravitational energy, and details a flight to Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
in 1830. The planet is inhabited by diminutive beings; they are convinced that life does not exist elsewhere than on their world, and refuse to believe that the unnamed narrator is actually from Earth. (They think he's an unusually tall Martian from some remote place on their planet.)
The book's narrator names his spacecraft the "Astronaut."
Alien language
The book contains what was probably the first alien languageAlien language
Alien language is a generic term used to describe a possible language originating from a hypothetical alien species. The study of such a hypothetical language has been termed xenolinguistics, although alternative terminology such as exolinguistics has found its way into use through the medium of...
in any work of fiction.
Influence
Curiously, the same title was used for a later, similar book — Edwin Pallander's Across the Zodiac: A Story of Adventure (18961896 in literature
The year 1896 in literature involved some significant new books.-Events:* Final volume of Theodore Roosevelt's The Winning of the West....
). Pallander copied some elements of Greg's plot; in his book, gravity is negated by a gyroscope
Gyroscope
A gyroscope is a device for measuring or maintaining orientation, based on the principles of angular momentum. In essence, a mechanical gyroscope is a spinning wheel or disk whose axle is free to take any orientation...
.
Greg's book had a clear influence on another science fiction novel of its era, The Great Romance
The Great Romance
The Great Romance is a science fiction and Utopian novel, first published in New Zealand in 1881. It had a significant influence on Edward Bellamy's Looking Backward, the most popular Utopian novel of the late nineteenth century.-The book:...
.
See also
- Annals of the Twenty-Ninth CenturyAnnals of the Twenty-Ninth CenturyAnnals of the Twenty-Ninth Century: or, The Autobiography of the Tenth President of the World-Republic is a science fiction novel written by Andrew Blair, and published anonymously in 1874....
- A Journey in Other WorldsA Journey in Other WorldsA Journey in Other Worlds: A Romance of the Future is a science fiction novel by John Jacob Astor IV, published in 1894.The book offers a fictional account of life in the year 2088...
External links
- Across the Planet at Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
(scanned books original editions color illustrated) (plain text and HTML)