Brilliant rumination on memory and being human

by Stanislaw Lem

MON, Walker

In the great canon of science fiction, aliens are anthropomorphised in some way or other - from the Alien and E.T. to Yoda and the "greys" of Roswell fame.

This is a useful tool for writers and illustrators to help readers and filmgoers to relate to extra-terrestrials, for unease and panic could ensue when our reality is given a slight twist (think of the drama when H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds was broadcast in America in 1938). But in the influential Solaris, Polish author Stanislaw Lem explores the idea that alien life need not have any characteristics associated with humans, but could be merely organic.

The novel opens with its chief protagonist, Kris Kelvin, heading towards the Prometheus, a space station floating above the mysterious Solaris. His mission is to observe the planet and its seemingly sentient blue ocean in an activity known as Solaristics, which has been going on for some time to little or no effect: in fact one crew member, Gibarian, had committed suicide after losing his mind; a second, Sartorius, has locked himself away; the third, the haggard and rambling Snow, is the only one willing to talk.