Rastignac The Devil

Description

Rastignac the Devil is a classic sci-fi thriller by Philip Jose Farmer, a novel full of intriguing ideas that give the reader a lot to think about while reading the book and afterwards as well. Published in May, 1954 in the well-known pulp magazine Fantastic Universe, the story raised a lot of interest in the middle of the 20th century and it continues to do so today.

The novel takes the reader to a future world populated by three different races (humans, reptiles and amphibians) that have implemented a common government based on empathy, with one of its principal goals being to deter all sorts of violence. However, this peaceful attitude has made the three races easy to dominate and inherently passive and has given rise to violent underground movements.

Rastignac the Devil sets out in this world apparently dominated by peace to teach violence wherever he can – a project that has both practical and philosophical implications. The peaceful inhabitants of the planet are not only vegetarians and they are also forced to wear special, living skins that make the wearers capable of telepathy and are designed to subdue any kind of violence with the help of electric shocks. To defeat this peacefulness, Rastignac becomes a carnivore and starts preaching his Philosophy of Violence as he is running on protein.

One of the features very frequently criticized about the story is its density. Many fans consider the novel too short to allow the writer to explore all the ideas raised – according to many, the ideas introduced in the short stories would take large volumes to elaborate to the fullest – and the ending is also considered to be quite abrupt, with lots of conclusions left undrawn. However, Rastignac the Devil certainly has an important role in Farmer’s oeuvre and it is considered by many fans to be a fresh and vibrant story that is radically different from all the other works by Farmer, but by no means of lower quality.
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