Deborah
ENGL 3850-02N
Sci-Fi Lit
Dr. Coats
29 April, 1997
The Day The Martians Came
Ok...I'll be totally honest and admit I only liked about 1/8 of the book. I think Pohl had a good idea with this book, but I feel that it would have worked better as a screenplay. But then the final chapter wouldn't have been quite so poignant or touching. There were moments in this book that I was rolling on the floor laughing about, but there seemed to be more that only confused me. Of course, seeing that these stories were originally published separately made me feel better about my opinion. I think I understand now how some people feel about the Martian Chronicles. Maybe I'll watch Robert Altman's movie Short Cuts and reread this book afterwards.
This book focuses on Mars as a place of lost opportunity and unfulfilled expectations. Mars is barren and useless to Terrans. Expedition after expedition has failed miserably to colonize the barren planet. Massive death counts have numbed the public and turned interest away from the embarrassment. It is only when a slightly insane crew member runs off on his own that evidence of life and ultimately life itself is found. The Martians themselves are of no use to any of the Terrans. Each Terran shown in each story has a different expectation of the Martians that goes unfulfilled. The Martians have no way to communicate with the Terrans, but they have no need to communicate. They have each other.
The last vignette of the book, Huddling, is the part that made the most impact on me. Humans are exactly what the Martians think of them. To quote Shakespeare: "..Full of Sound and Fury, signifying nothing..." The Martians have only each other and they need no communication with the Terrans. The Terrans have no communication with each other, so how can they even attempt to communicate with the Martians? Even in the worst of circumstances, the Martians are there for each other. The Terrans are at odds with one another even in the best of circumstances. What does that say for the Terrans of this book? What does that say about Terrans outside of the book? It's not a pleasant thought.