Memoirs Of A Space Traveler: Further Reminiscences Of Ijon Tichy (2000) - Plot & Excerpts
Memoirs of a Space Traveler is the second book in a row I have read by Lem. The first, Pirx the Pilot, was good. This one is a classic and a revelation.In it, Ijon Tichy recounts his numerous adventures, including trips to other planets, encounters with mad scientists and their terrible inventions, and that one time he created the Universe. (For which he apologizes!)From the opening pages, the collection's outstanding humor shines through. Several stories, particularly the "The Eighteenth Voyage" (where Tichy creates the Universe), "The Washing Machine Tragedy", and Tichy's open letter "Let Us Save the Universe" are among the funniest short stories I have ever read, O. Henry included. The core premises of Tichy's adventures are not particularly creative. There is a time machine story, several artificial intelligence stories, and several killer robots (of both the humorous and terrifying varieties, if not both simultaneously!). However, their execution is compelling, exciting, and chock full of ideas. Lem introduces new twists to each theme that makes it feel fresh and unique. And covering well-worn territory is by design, as the book satirizes many science fiction conventions. Lem is a true intellect; not in a pretentious way, but in the sense that he has many deep, intelligent ideas. There is an impressive amount of science in certain sections mixed with heady philosophical concepts. However, it never bogs down the work, and goes hand-in-hand with the plot. Despite the comedy, several of the stories are genuinely terrible and horrifying. For one, the mad scientist Professor's Corcoran's creation of a reality like ours experienced by iron boxes attached to wires and stimuli made a big impression upon me. At first, this seems like a common idea, if an early iteration of it; we have all seen The Matrix. However, it takes matters further and mentions several details about our reality that give it an eerie, haunting quality similar stories haven't achieved for me. I was also shocked by the story of Professor Decantor's creation of the soul, perhaps the most evocative example of science fiction horror, when one grasps the full extent of what the madman has done.As one can tell, this is an eclectic, unique short story collection, combining tremendous humor, intellectualism, and horror in its nine tales. I would highly recommend this work to anyone, science fiction fan or not.
This is a bit like a "B-side" to The Star Diaries. The stories in both books were originally published together in Polish; the ones in this volume are what was left out of the first and it somewhat shows when you compare the quality of the two. The stories are on average pretty short and follow the same fantastical comedic "tall tale" style as the Star Diaries (similar feel to The Cyberiad as well). If you're new to Lem then skip this one until you're more familiar with his better stuff. Even if you're not new to Lem I strongly recommend reading The Star Diaries first and then if you like that reading this one, which does still have some good stories. Regarding the stories themselves, the best are probably "Doctor Diagoras" and "The Washing Machine Tragedy". The former touches on the theme that pervades many of Lem's works: the nebulousness of "intelligence" and the problems of communication with the truly alien. The latter comically deals with first consumer culture, and then sticky problems arising from artificial intelligence and legal definitions/classifications of individuality/ownership (while at the same time parodying the logical hoops groups of people will go through to justify maltreatment/oppression of some disenfranchized group -- in this case sentient washing machines). The Twenty-fourth voyage is interesting because it satirizes liberal thinking on "individual rights" by taking it to a ridiculous conclusion. I might be making this book in general sound somewhat deeper and more serious than it is. In fact, though it was probably different in the time and place Lem was writing, modern readers might feel underwhelmed by some of these stories that have a "gimmick" based on things you might hear in intro to philosophy (e.g. "brain in a jar", the transporter problem, etc). Though Lem is a really intelligent and thoughtful writer, the tone of most of these stories is generally silly and it doesn't engage with any of these ideas very seriously or deeply. For that you'd have to read Lem's other work.
What do You think about Memoirs Of A Space Traveler: Further Reminiscences Of Ijon Tichy (2000)?
This companion book to The Star Diaries is a collection of thought experiments thinly wrapped in funny, even goofy, stories in which the hero witnesses or participates in the work of cranks and mad scientists. You know, like time machines, human clones, handheld souls, sentient washing machines, and the creation of the universe. Lem's short stories are SF at its purest, or, if you like, philosophy of mind and metaphysics at its most fun.
—Jacob
These short stories ranged from mildly amusing to pretty awesome. My least favorites were "The Twenty-Fourth Voyage" and "The Washing Machine Tragedy". Both started out interesting, but managed to lose my attention about halfway through. "The Eighteenth Voyage" also kind of lost me towards the end with all its "clever" names (Lou Cipher is Lucifer etc. How amazingly witty...), but I liked the idea of the story. I really enjoyed the first four stories in "Further Reminiscences of Ijon Tichy" though, especially I and II. And the end story, "Let Us Save the Universe" was amusing.
—Jordan
