bairdduvessa

I finished Strangers in a Strange Land, goddamn I had forgotten how much of my own personal philosophies I had stolen from this book. Do not get me wrong, I do not agree with some of the points made, or even half. I think I just prefer the more anarchistic ones.

Another thing that flooded back to me was back when I read this the 1st time I was 15 years old. And this was the very first piece of literature I had ever read that they mentioned sex, and even (by my experience then) went into some details about it. Granted today do my 'world' experiences and exposure to 'Dear Penthouse' and even the 'Interview with a Vampire' I've become a tad bit immune to the sexual texts in SiaSLof course it was written decades ago, so that probably helps :-P

Ok so I am going to give you guys here a break down, part by part. There may me spoilers (depending on how much I want to reveal).

His Maculate Origin
The first part of the book establishes that Mike was born on Mars and raised by Martians, and as such he knows nothing of humanity, A reporter named Ben Caxton and his informant/potential fianc Jill discover that the government plans on ripping him off of his inheritances (Mike is very VERY rich due to who his parents were and the contracts they had filed previous to their journey to Mars). Ben being a muckraker tries to expose the government and goes missing. Jill panicking kidnaps Mike from the hospital he was at and due to some later events goes on the run with him.

His Eccentric Education
Jill takes Mike to see a friend of Ben's, a writer/doctor/lawyer/recluse named Jubal. Jubal is essentially the author's mouthpiece, spouting his own views and philosophies, but also adding 'color' to the book. This section deals with the reader discovering how nave Mike is, but it also exposes how naive we all are. Mike being from Mars thinks nothing about killing, and does so and yet the earthlings who become his water brothers are to hypnotized by his innocence. All but Jubal his is a cynic and apparently a master of knowing humans. Eventually the feds figure out where Mike is and Jubal has to use his complete knowledge of the Law to set up a public meeting. Declaring Mike the sole ambassador and Ruler of Mars and as such also protects his inheritance by trapping the president in a legal quagmire. The latter parts of this part deal with Mike learning about religions (see the post I made last week), though 1st TV then a meeting with a Hyper Evangical Group the Fosterites (they have their own form of military).
The part ends with Mike losing his virginity to one of the 4 women that are living with him and Jubal, and he and his nurse set off to teach Mike about the world.

His Scandalous Career.
We find that Mike and Jill are working as part of a carnival. Mike is a magician, but they ultimately fail because Mike cannot laugh. After their last night, a friend, who was a tattooed lady visits, and converts Mike and Jill, or at least attempts too. Mike and Jill leave the experience changed, but continue on. One day Mike discovers how to laugh and thus discovers what it is he must do.

His Happy Destiny
Mike has started his own church and has taken member of the Fosterites with him. Mike's major tenant is that 'Thou art God", and that to truly understand one must understand Martian. In all essence it sounds like a modern day cult (see last weeks post), but in an sense the Hippies took ideas from this part of the book. Shared loves, share wealth, shared everything.
Of course this pisses people off and Mike is eventually killed by those who were not converted. Jubal takes over the church (hesitantly at 1st) . And Mike becomes and archangel.

I know my summaries suck ass, and really you can only understand by reading the book. It is one of the great works of 'modern' fiction, even if it is a little bit dry.

A criticism against it (according to wikipedia) is that it lacks any psychological depth, which in a way it does, but in a way it doesn't. Instead it focuses on the reader listening in and using observational psychology instead of internal.

It is also interesting to note how Mr. Heinlein's (and to the obvious extent Jubal's) prophecies about religion in the 'free world' come true.
In the book the Major Religious force is a group called the Fosterites, who follow a man named Foster who when he was alive (and not mummified behind glass) rewrote the New Testament and set up a religions that was just short of an orgy (Mike would better thes). Basically it invites people in to the church to see an introduction service (think of a TV religious thing), and then after faith is demonstrated they are allowed to become members and are 'saved', meaning they can sin all they want inside the church, and it is cool. But it doesn't stop there; inside the organization itself are inner circles upon inner circles. The group is so massive, that they influence everything in the former United States.

Not only that they have a militia that never goes punished for it's militant acts. Speak out against them? You property is destroyed and it is ok. Mike, who was coveted by the inner members eventually joins them and takes their message of Happiness is Not Sin, and takes it further-causing a split in the church and Mike being branded as the antichrist.

Towards the end of the book Mike's 'church' is destroyed by a bomb when no one was there (kind of-you'd have to read to understand), and while Jubal downplays whether it could have been the Fosterites, everything you have read up until now implies it was them.
In Mike's final Moments he is attacked by a mob, and the reporters covering it are congratulating the crowd, called Mike a liar, a monster, abomination ant etc.

It feels as if the author was trying to show the dangerousness of the evangical movements of this nation (and this was from 1949-1961!). Heinlien was an interesting man, he constantly attacked so Evangicals, and yet used them as characters positively in many of his book (see Job: A Comedy of Justice). And yet somehow it is the most extreme who come across as idiots and savages in the end.

i have finally read a Raymond Chandler book. and it was good. And by that I mean, I didn't have it completely figured out within a hundred pages. Hell even at the end I'm sure the main character never really had it figured it out! The read was simple, if short, and I was able to visualize well.

To anybody who has seen the film versions, how are they?