A Princess of Mars
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A Princess of Mars is an Edgar Rice Burroughs science fiction novel, the first of his famous Barsoom series. It is also Burroughs' first novel, predating any of his famous Tarzan novels. He wrote it between July and September 28, 1911, going through four working titles; initially, he was going to call it "My First Adventure on Mars," then "The Green Martians," "Dejah Thoris, Martian Princess," and finally "Under the Moons of Mars." The finished story was first published under the last of these titles in All-Story as a six-part serial in the issues for February-July 1912. For the serial publication the author's name was given as "Norman Bean"; Burroughs had chosen the pseudonym of "Normal Bean" as a type of pun stressing he was in his right mind, being concerned he might suffer ridicule for writing such a fantastic story. The effect was spoiled when a typesetter changed "Normal" to "Norman" on the assumption that the former was a typographical error. The story was later published as a complete novel under the present title by A.C. McClurg in October, 1917.
Full of swordplay and daring feats, the story is considered a classic example of 20th century pulp fiction.
The story
John Carter, an American Civil War veteran, goes prospecting in Arizona and, when set upon by Indians, is mysteriously transported to Mars. Called "Barsoom" by its inhabitants, Carter finds that he has demigod-like strength on this planet, due to its lesser gravity. Carter soon falls in among the Tharks, a nomadic tribe of the planet's warlike, four-armed, green inhabitants. Thanks to his strength and combat abilities he soon rises to a position of respect in the tribe.The Tharks subsequently capture Dejah Thoris, Princess of Helium, a member of the humanoid red Martian race. The red Martians inhabit a loose network of city states and control the desert planet's canals along which its agriculture is concentrated. Carter rescues her from the green men to return her to her people.
Except for some jewelry, all of the planet's races seem to eschew clothing and look down upon Earth's inhabitants because they do wear clothing. Burroughs describes Dejah Thoris thus:
- And the sight which met my eyes was that of a slender, girlish figure, similar in every detail to the earthly women of my past life... Her face was oval and beautiful in the extreme, her every feature was finely chiseled and exquisite, her eyes large and lustrous and her head surmounted by a mass of coal black, waving hair, caught loosely into a strange yet becoming coiffure. Her skin was of a light reddish copper color, against which the crimson glow of her cheeks and the ruby of her beautifully molded lips shone with a strangely enhancing effect.
- She was as destitute of clothes as the green Martians who accompanied her; indeed, save for her highly wrought ornaments she was entirely naked, nor could any apparel have enhanced the beauty of her perfect and symmetrical figure.
He awakens back on Earth, left to wonder what has become of his family and adopted world.
Legacy
This book and its series are noted as inspiration of many later science fiction authors and scientists. Robert A. Heinlein, Ray Bradbury and Carl Sagan note these stories as early inspiration for their work.Alexei Tolstoy's novel Aelita (1922) also presents a princess of Mars, but has a Leninist point of view.
Tars Tarkas makes a cameo appearance in the PC game Dragon Wars by Interplay.
Copyright
The copyright for this story has expired in the United States and, thus, now resides in the public domain there. The text is available via Project Gutenberg.Feature film
A full-length feature film of this story has been attempted and aborted many times. Currently, a feature project is in production. The feature film version of the story was originally called A Princess of Mars, but was renamed John Carter of Mars during pre-production. Due in 2006, Jon Favreau (Zathura, Elf) is slated to direct, while Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News is producing.External links
- [Text of the novel at Project Gutenberg]
- [Hypertext version of Project Gutenberg text of A Princess of Mars]
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