Solaris by Stanislaw Lem
Introduction
Solaris by Stanislaw Lem is a science fiction story that explores the themes of communication, sense of self, and reality. It is a stand-alone novel. Kris Kelvin is a psychologist who must discover what is happening with the researchers on the Solaris space station. The Solaris Station is orbiting a planet with a world-sized entity they name Ocean who the scientists are unsuccessfully trying to communicate with. Will Kris understand what is happening with the Solaris entity before it is too late, and all the researchers are dead?
Summary
In Solaris by Stanislaw Lem, the corporation that finances the Solaris space station sends psychologist Kris Kelvin to figure out what is going on with the researchers on the Solaris space station that orbits the planet of Solaris. There are three men left inhabiting the space station. One of the researchers that Kelvin knew named Gibarion sent him a message to come to the station. He first meets Snow when he arrives and later, he meets Sartorius. Kelvin learns the fate of Gibarion. He learns something from all three about the issue with Solaris.
The researchers tried to contact an entity on the planet of Solaris. The entity is an immense world ocean. The entity tried to contact the researchers with beings created from the memories of the researchers’ which they call visitors. Things get more complicated for Kelvin when his visitor arrives. She is unexpected and perplexing to him.
Recommendation
Solaris by Stanislaw Lem is a thought-provoking novel. I read the 1970 translation from the French by Joanna Kilmartin and Steve Cox with a book cover promoting the 2002 movie adaption. It’s an English translation of the French Translation of the original Polish. I watched the 1972 movie adaptation. The cinematography was fabulous. The actors spoke Russian, but the subtitles worked with an excellent ending. I watched the 2002 movie adaptation starring George Clooney and directed by Stephen Soderbergh. It was interesting, but didn’t make its production cost back at the box office.
Links
This is the link to the Goodreads page of Solaris by Stanislaw Lem.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51077757-solaris
The title story of Stories of Your Life’s theme is like Solaris; contact with an unknowable alien entity.
My review of Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang is an eight-story SF short story collection. It was made into the movie Arrival. The title story explores the similar theme of first alien contact.