Orphans of the Sky
Encyclopedia
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
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Robert A. Heinlein
Robert A. Heinlein
Robert Anson Heinlein was an American science fiction writer. Often called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was one of the most influential and controversial authors of the genre. He set a standard for science and engineering plausibility and helped to raise the genre's standards of...
, consisting of two parts: "Universe" (Astounding Science Fiction, May 1941) and its sequel, "Common Sense" (Astounding Science Fiction, October 1941). The two novellas were first published together in book form in 1963. "Universe" was also published separately in 1951 as a 10¢ Dell paperback. These works contain one of the earliest fictional depictions of a generation ship
Generation ship
A generation ship is a hypothetical type of interstellar ark starship that travels across great distances between stars at a speed much slower than the speed of light...
.
Characters and story
At the beginning of the story, the gigantic, cylindrical generation ship Vanguard, originally destined for Proxima CentauriProxima Centauri
Proxima Centauri is a red dwarf star about 4.2 light-years distant in the constellation of Centaurus. It was discovered in 1915 by Robert Innes, the Director of the Union Observatory in South Africa, and is the nearest known star to the Sun, although it is too faint to be seen with the naked eye...
, is cruising pilotless through the interstellar medium
Interstellar medium
In astronomy, the interstellar medium is the matter that exists in the space between the star systems in a galaxy. This matter includes gas in ionic, atomic, and molecular form, dust, and cosmic rays. It fills interstellar space and blends smoothly into the surrounding intergalactic space...
as a result of a mutiny
Mutiny
Mutiny is a conspiracy among members of a group of similarly situated individuals to openly oppose, change or overthrow an authority to which they are subject...
that killed all the piloting officers. Over time, the descendants of the surviving loyal crew have forgotten the purpose and nature of their ship and lapsed into a pre-technological culture marked by superstition, wherein the word "Ship" is become a synonym of "cosmos
Cosmos
In the general sense, a cosmos is an orderly or harmonious system. It originates from the Greek term κόσμος , meaning "order" or "ornament" and is antithetical to the concept of chaos. Today, the word is generally used as a synonym of the word Universe . The word cosmos originates from the same root...
", so that "To move the ship" is considered an oxymoron
Oxymoron
An oxymoron is a figure of speech that combines contradictory terms...
, and references to the Ship's "voyage" are interpreted as metaphor
Metaphor
A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent a less tangible thing or some intangible quality or idea; e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels." Metaphor may also be used for any rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via...
. They are ruled by an oligarchy
Oligarchy
Oligarchy is a form of power structure in which power effectively rests with an elite class distinguished by royalty, wealth, family ties, commercial, and/or military legitimacy...
of "Officers" and "Scientists", whose head is the putative heir of or successor to the original captain. Most crew members lead a simple illiterate life of agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, seldom or never venturing to the "upper decks" where the "muties" (an abbreviation of "mutant
Mutant
In biology and especially genetics, a mutant is an individual, organism, or new genetic character, arising or resulting from an instance of mutation, which is a base-pair sequence change within the DNA of a gene or chromosome of an organism resulting in the creation of a new character or trait not...
s" or "mutineers
Mutiny
Mutiny is a conspiracy among members of a group of similarly situated individuals to openly oppose, change or overthrow an authority to which they are subject...
") dwell.
Polycephaly
Polycephaly is a condition of having more than one head. The term is derived from the Greek stems poly- meaning 'much' and kephali- meaning "head", and encompasses bicephaly and dicephaly . A variation is an animal born with two faces on a single head, a condition known as diprosopus...
leader of a powerful mutie gang, who later reveal the Ship's true nature and purpose to Hugh.
Having become convinced of the Ship's true purpose, Hugh convinces Joe-Jim to complete the Vanguard's mission of reaching its intended destination (preserved in fable as "Far Centaurus"), and returns to the lower levels of the Ship to convince others to help him; but is arrested by his former boss Bill Ertz and sentenced to death. While in his cell, Hugh persuades his old friend Alan Mahoney to enlist Joe-Jim's gang in rescuing him; and sometime after having been rescued, reveals the proof of his assertions to Bill and Alan. Bill then goes to convince the captain's aide, Phineas Narby, to join Hugh's effort.
Inspired by one of Joe-Jim's books, The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, first serialized in March–July 1844. Set in the 17th century, it recounts the adventures of a young man named d'Artagnan after he leaves home to travel to Paris, to join the Musketeers of the Guard...
, the protagonists create sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
s superior to any weapons present in the lower Ship and and overthrow the Captain, later to install Phineas as Captain, Joe-Jim as Vice-Captain, Bill as Chief Engineer, and Hugh himself as astrogator
Navigator
A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation. The navigator's primary responsibility is to be aware of ship or aircraft position at all times. Responsibilities include planning the journey, advising the Captain or aircraft Commander of estimated timing to...
. When Phineas is secure in his position, he launches an attack to rid the Ship of muties once and for all. Joe is killed in the fighting; whereupon Jim sacrifices himself to hold off their pursuers long enough for Hugh, Bill, Alan, and their wives to retreat to a lifeboat left by the Ship's builders, wherein they leave the Ship and land on the inhabitable moon of a gas giant
Gas giant
A gas giant is a large planet that is not primarily composed of rock or other solid matter. There are four gas giants in the Solar System: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune...
, which they explore and colonize.
Reception
Avram DavidsonAvram Davidson
Avram Davidson was an American writer of fantasy fiction, science fiction, and crime fiction, as well as the author of many stories that do not fit into a genre niche...
described Orphans as "a modern classic," praising "the magnitude and magnificence of Orphans concepts" despite expressing disappointment in "the limitations of its conclusion".
Links to other Heinlein stories
The Vanguard is the sister ship of the New Frontiers, the ship stolen by the Howard Families in the story Methuselah's ChildrenMethuselah's Children
Methuselah's Children is a science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein, originally serialized in Astounding Science Fiction in the July, August, and September 1941 issues. It was expanded into a full-length novel in 1958....
. The later novel Time Enough for Love
Time Enough for Love
Time Enough for Love is a science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein, first published in 1973. The work was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1973 and both the Hugo and Locus Awards in 1974.-Plot:...
briefly mentions the rediscovery of the moon 2000 years later by the larger human civilization, finding the survivors' descendants in a few thousand highly intelligent hunter-gatherers.
Radio adaptation
"Universe" was also performed as a radio play on the NBC Radio Network programs Dimension XDimension X
Dimension X was an NBC radio program broadcast on an unsponsored, sustaining basis from April 8, 1950 to September 29, 1951. The first 13 episodes were broadcast live, and the remainder were pre-recorded...
(on November 26, 1951) and X Minus One
X Minus One
X Minus One was a half-hour science fiction radio drama series broadcast from April 24, 1955 to January 9, 1958 in various timeslots on NBC.-Overview:...
(on May 15, 1955). This version has several drastic changes to the story, especially in its conclusion wherein Hugh is killed showing the crew of the Vanguard the true nature of the Ship.
See also
- Non-Stop (originally titled Starship) by Brian W. Aldiss
- Captive UniverseCaptive UniverseCaptive Universe is a science fiction novel by American author Harry Harrison, which was first published in 1969.-Plot synopsis:Chimal is a young Aztec tribesman living in an isolated valley which was sealed off from the rest of the world in ages past by a massive earthquake...
by Harry HarrisonHarry HarrisonHarry Harrison is an American science fiction author best known for his character the Stainless Steel Rat and the novel Make Room! Make Room! , the basis for the film Soylent Green... - "Proxima CentauriProxima Centauri (short story)"Proxima Centauri" is a science fiction short story by Murray Leinster that first appeared in the March 1935 issue of Astounding Stories. Unusually for the time, the story adhered to the laws of physics as they were known, showing a starship that was limited by the speed of light, and which took...
" by Murray LeinsterMurray LeinsterMurray Leinster was a nom de plume of William Fitzgerald Jenkins, an award-winning American writer of science fiction and alternate history... - "The Book of the Long SunThe Book of the Long SunThe Book of the Long Sun is a tetralogy by Gene Wolfe, comprising Nightside of the Long Sun, Lake of the Long Sun, Caldé of the Long Sun, and Exodus from the Long Sun. The first two volumes are published together as Litany of the Long Sun and the last two as Epiphany of the Long Sun...
" by Gene WolfeGene WolfeGene Wolfe is an American science fiction and fantasy writer. He is noted for his dense, allusive prose as well as the strong influence of his Catholic faith, to which he converted after marrying into the religion. He is a prolific short story writer and a novelist, and has won many awards in the... - "PandorumPandorumPandorum is a 2009 German-British science fiction thriller film written by Travis Milloy, directed by Christian Alvart and produced by Paul W.S. Anderson. The film stars Dennis Quaid and Ben Foster. Filming began in Berlin in August 2008. Pandorum was released on September 25, 2009 in the United...
"
External links
- Audio transcription of "Universe" as performed on NBC's X Minus One at OTR Network.