Lumen (Early Classics of Science Fiction) [Paperback]

Camille Flammarion (Author), Brian Stableford (Editor, Translator)

Book Description

Series: Early Classics of Science Fiction | Publication Date: July 1, 2002

Lumen was first published by Camille Flammarion (1842-1925) in 1872 as part of the Stories of Infinity collection. Flammarion was a well-known French astronomer, writer and highly successful popularizer of science during the late 19th century.

This famous novel, written in the form of a philosophical dialogue, features a cosmic spirit named Lumen who reveals the scientific wonders of the celestial universe to Quaerens, a young seeker of knowledge. Within its pages, the author mixes empirical observations about the nature and speed of light with vivid speculations about such diverse subjects as reincarnation, time travel, the reversibility of history and the ecospheres of alien planets. Lumen is one of the first science fiction novels to include detailed descriptions of alien life forms and the first to imagine (30 years before Einstein's theory of relativity) the differences in perception that might result from traveling at velocities close to and beyond the speed of light.

This Wesleyan edition is the first English translation of the original French text in over a hundred years. The volume includes notes, appendices and a critical introduction.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Initially published in 1872 and here translated for the first time into English, this French SF classic employs Plato's philosophical dialogue form to unite 19th-century science with boldly imaginative fictional narrative. A noted astronomer and science popularizer, Flammarion (1842-1925) speculates on the relative nature of space and time, anticipating by three decades Einstein's theory of relativity. That the author was also fascinated by psychic "research" comes through in the five lively "conversations" that comprise the text between Questor ("Seeker") and the recently dead Lumen ("Light"), whose soul roams the universe while instructing his avid pupil. Bolstered by Stableford's able introduction, voluminous notes and a comprehensive bibliography, this short novel survives the first two didactic and repetitive conversations to burst pyrotechnically into the sheerest poetry when Lumen describes the indescribable: sentient entities on unheard-of worlds linked by psychic bonds that draw souls into successive reincarnations across the abyss of intergalactic space and time. This early work illuminates the human aspiration to overcome mortality, occasionally reflecting a genuine spark of the divine, as when Lumen muses, "What voice is more eloquent than the silence of a starlit night?" (June) Forecast: Its appeal limited mainly to SF historians and Stableford completists, this book will have a healthy sales life only if it becomes part of the SF curriculum on college campuses.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Bolstered by Stableford's able introduction, voluminous notes and a comprehensive bibliography, this short novel survives the first two didactic and repetitive conversations to burst pyrotechnically into the sheerest poetry when Lumen describes the indescribable: sentient entities on unheard-of worlds linked by psychic bonds that draw souls into successive reincarnations across the abyss of intergalactic space and time."--Publishers Weekly

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Wesleyan; Trans. from the French edition (July 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0819565687
• ISBN-13: 978-0819565686
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,271,381 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Short But Highly Influential, December 27, 2005

By 

Dave_42 "Dave_42" (Australia) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Lumen (Early Classics of Science Fiction) (Paperback)

"Lumen" by Camille Flammarion is the third book in the Early Classics of Science Fiction series from Wesleyan University Press. First published as part of Flammarion's "Stories of Infinity" collection in 1872, Lumen is one of the first examples of science fiction exploring the different nature of alien life forms. Camille Flammarion was an Astronomer, who helped to popularize science. He was a founder of the Société Astronomique de France and the first president of that organization.

It is the story of conversations between the spirit (Lumen) of a recently deceased man and Quaerens, a still living man who is seeking answers about the nature of the universe. Flammarion touches on subjects such as relativity (before Einstein), the speed of light and sound, the continuation of the human spirit after death, and the variation of alien life forms on different worlds. As one might expect, given the advances in science since it was written, there are certainly many mistakes in his thinking. However, this is still a remarkable work, and one which can be appreciated for its influence on the genre of science fiction. I would not be surprised if Olaf Stapledon had read this, as there are clear similarities between "Lumen" and Stapledon's "Star Maker".

This is a very short work, only 117 pages long, but it is supplemented with a through set of notes, and a superb introduction by Brian Stableford who provided a new translation for this edition.