The Weapon Shops of Isher
Encyclopedia
The Weapon Shops of Isher is a science fiction
novel
by A. E. van Vogt
, first published in 1951
. The novel is a fix-up
created from three previously published short stories
about the Weapon Shops and Isher civilization:
detail the workings of Isher civilization and the adventures of Robert Hedrock, The One Immortal Man, as he keeps it in balance in the face of attempts by the Weapon Makers, who have forgotten their purpose as a permanent opposition, and the strong government of the Empress, Innelda Isher, to undermine each other. The Weapon Shops provide the populace with defensive weapons and an alternative legal system.
The Isher/Weapon Shops novels are one of the very few examples of Golden Age science fiction that explicitly discusses the right to keep and bear arms, specifically guns. Indeed, the motto of the Weapon Shops, repeated several times, is "The right to buy weapons is the right to be free". Van Vogt's guns have virtually magical properties, and can only be used in self-defense.
The political philosophy of the Weapon Shops is minimalist. They will not interfere with the corrupt imperial monarchy of the Isher government, on the grounds that men always have a government of the type they deserve: no government, however bad, exists without at least the tacit consent of the governed
. The mission of the Weapon Shops therefore is merely to offer single individuals the right to protect themselves with a firearm, or, in cases of fraud, access to a "Robin Hood" alternative court system that judges and awards compensation from large, imperial merchant combines to cheated individuals. Because the population has access to this alternative system of justice, the Isher government cannot take the final step toward totalitarianism.
The novel was published by Greenberg in New York in 1951. It was also published as a paperback by Ace Books and in 1969 by New English Library in the U.K.
and McComas
praised Weapon Shops as "a fine excitingly involved melodrama." . P. Schuyler Miller
reviewed the novel favorably, reporting that "It will take agile wits to know just what is happening, or why, at any given time." New York Times reviewer Basil Davenport found the opening segment "begins well enough," but as the novel progresses, the reader's attention becomes "badly divided."
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 A. E. van Vogt
A. E. van Vogt
Alfred Elton van Vogt was a Canadian-born science fiction author regarded by some as one of the most popular and complex science fiction writers of the mid-twentieth century: the "Golden Age" of the genre....
, first published in 1951
1951 in literature
The year 1951 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*E. E. Cummings and Rachel Carson are awarded Guggenheim Fellowships.*Flannery O'Connor is diagnosed with lupus....
. The novel is a fix-up
Fix-up
A fix-up is a novel created from short stories that may or may not have been initially related or previously published. The stories may be edited for consistency, and sometimes new connecting material—such as a frame story—is written for the new novel. The term was coined by the science fiction...
created from three previously published short stories
Short Stories
Short Stories may refer to:*A plural for Short story*Short Stories , an American pulp magazine published from 1890-1959*Short Stories, a 1954 collection by O. E...
about the Weapon Shops and Isher civilization:
- "The Seesaw" (Analog Science Fiction and FactAnalog Science Fiction and FactAnalog Science Fiction and Fact is an American science fiction magazine. As of 2011, it is the longest running continuously published magazine of that genre...
, July 1941) - "The Weapon ShopThe Weapon Shop"The Weapon Shop" is a science fiction short story by A. E. van Vogt originally published in 1942 in Astounding Science Fiction.-Plot summary:...
" (Analog Science Fiction and FactAnalog Science Fiction and FactAnalog Science Fiction and Fact is an American science fiction magazine. As of 2011, it is the longest running continuously published magazine of that genre...
, December 1942) - "The Weapon Shops of Isher" (Wonder StoriesWonder StoriesWonder Stories was an early American science fiction magazine which was published under several titles from 1929 to 1955. It was founded by Hugo Gernsback in 1929 after he had lost control of his first science fiction magazine, Amazing Stories, when his media company Experimenter Publishing went...
, February 1949)
Plot summary
The Weapon Shops of Isher and its sequel The Weapon MakersThe Weapon Makers
The Weapon Makers is a science fiction novel by A. E. van Vogt.The novel was originally serialized in Astounding Science Fiction in February–April 1943. In book form , this serial was first published in 1947...
detail the workings of Isher civilization and the adventures of Robert Hedrock, The One Immortal Man, as he keeps it in balance in the face of attempts by the Weapon Makers, who have forgotten their purpose as a permanent opposition, and the strong government of the Empress, Innelda Isher, to undermine each other. The Weapon Shops provide the populace with defensive weapons and an alternative legal system.
The Isher/Weapon Shops novels are one of the very few examples of Golden Age science fiction that explicitly discusses the right to keep and bear arms, specifically guns. Indeed, the motto of the Weapon Shops, repeated several times, is "The right to buy weapons is the right to be free". Van Vogt's guns have virtually magical properties, and can only be used in self-defense.
The political philosophy of the Weapon Shops is minimalist. They will not interfere with the corrupt imperial monarchy of the Isher government, on the grounds that men always have a government of the type they deserve: no government, however bad, exists without at least the tacit consent of the governed
Consent of the governed
"Consent of the governed" is a phrase synonymous with a political theory wherein a government's legitimacy and moral right to use state power is only justified and legal when derived from the people or society over which that political power is exercised...
. The mission of the Weapon Shops therefore is merely to offer single individuals the right to protect themselves with a firearm, or, in cases of fraud, access to a "Robin Hood" alternative court system that judges and awards compensation from large, imperial merchant combines to cheated individuals. Because the population has access to this alternative system of justice, the Isher government cannot take the final step toward totalitarianism.
The novel was published by Greenberg in New York in 1951. It was also published as a paperback by Ace Books and in 1969 by New English Library in the U.K.
Reception
BoucherAnthony Boucher
Anthony Boucher was an American science fiction editor and author of mystery novels and short stories. He was particularly influential as an editor. Between 1942 and 1947 he acted as reviewer of mostly mystery fiction for the San Francisco Chronicle...
and McComas
J. Francis McComas
Jesse Francis McComas was an American science fiction editor. McComas wrote several stories on his own in the 1950s using both his own name and the pseudonym Webb Marlowe....
praised Weapon Shops as "a fine excitingly involved melodrama." . P. Schuyler Miller
P. Schuyler Miller
Peter Schuyler Miller was an American science fiction writer and critic.-Life:Miller was raised in New York's Mohawk Valley, which led to a life-long interest in the Iroquois Indians. He pursued this as an amateur archaeologist and a member of the New York State Archaeological Association.He...
reviewed the novel favorably, reporting that "It will take agile wits to know just what is happening, or why, at any given time." New York Times reviewer Basil Davenport found the opening segment "begins well enough," but as the novel progresses, the reader's attention becomes "badly divided."
In popular culture
- Stephen KingStephen KingStephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
referenced the book in the novel FirestarterFirestarterFirestarter is a novel by Stephen King first published in 1980. It was nominated for a British Fantasy Award in 1981.The book is dedicated to the author Shirley Jackson: "In Memory of Shirley Jackson, who never needed to raise her voice."...
and the miniseries Golden Years by calling the shadowing and secretive government agency pursuing the characters "The Shop"The Shop (Stephen King)The Shop is a fictional, top secret United States government agency in the writings of Stephen King. It plays a central role as the antagonist in the novel Firestarter, the miniseries Golden Years, and the film The Lawnmower Man, and is an element of the novel The Tommyknockers...
. - The Weapon Shop slogan, "The right to own weapons is the right to be free", is often approvingly cited by supporters of the National Rifle AssociationNational Rifle AssociationThe National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
. - In F. Paul WilsonF. Paul WilsonFrancis Paul Wilson is an American author, primarily in the science fiction and horror genres. His debut novel was Healer . Wilson is also a part-time practicing family physician. He made his first sales in 1970 to Analog while still in medical school , and continued to write science fiction...
's popular Repairman JackRepairman JackThis series of novels uses realistic, thriller-like situations to tell a story with a broad supernatural theme. It is technically a spin-off branch of the aforementioned larger, overarching supernatural horror series, The Adversary Cycle.- Introduction :...
series of novels, the titular hero's weapon shop of choice is "Isher Sporting Goods". The secret basement of Isher Sporting Goods, where the weapons are stored, features a neon sign over the stairs that reads, "The right to own weapons is the right to be free". - S. M. StirlingS. M. StirlingStephen Michael Stirling is a French-born Canadian-American science fiction and fantasy author. Stirling is probably best known for his Draka series of alternate history novels and the more recent time travel/alternate history Nantucket series and Emberverse series.-Personal:Stirling was born on...
has written a series of novels in which everything depending on 500 years of modern technology (firearms, electricity, internal combustion engines, etc.) has been rendered useless. The populace relies on bows, arrows, and swords for self-defence and to wage war. The Weapons Shop of Isherman and Sons manufactures swords. - The Market AnarchistMarket anarchismFree-market anarchism refers to an individualist anarchist philosophy in which monopoly of force held by government would be replaced by a competitive market of non-monopolistic organizations providing security, justice, and other defense services...
Center for a Stateless Society has referred to WikileaksWikileaksWikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
as "Our Weapon Shop of Isher".