LUNAR ENCOUNTER
By Harold W. Allen
The philosophical novel has never been a very popular genre. Works like
William Godwin’s Caleb Williams come to mind - important documents in
the history of ideas, but not anyone’s favourite book.
In more recent times the difficulty in writing a fiction of ideas has only
grown. The dependence on irony in so much contemporary writing is symptomatic of
the spirit of the age. We tend to be suspicious of programmatic or preachy
authors with a message. The quest for a single "Truth" has been
largely banished to the New Age shelves.
Lunar Encounter, which uses a story about the discovery
of an alien outpost on the Moon to introduce the "New
Cosmology" of Harold W. Allen, is a part of the old tradition, and
illustrates both the strengths and weaknesses of the form.
The philosophy of the novel, which is more thoroughly developed in the
author's Cosmic
Evolution, is a complex blend of physics, astronomy, sociology, religious
studies and economics. I won’t pretend to say I understand it all, or that I
am qualified to pronounce on its validity, but from what I can tell the main
theme is the "evolutionary saga of life."
Putting this saga into a nutshell isn't easy. Since all spirit is immortal, and reincarnation is a function of the law of
conservation of mass-energy, spirit must constantly be renewing itself in a
series of "Small Bangs." (That the universe is finite, "enclosed
by an impenetrable physical boundary" of annihilation the Earth is
approaching, is a part of the theory explained in more depth elsewhere.) But in
addition to being renewed, spirit evolves - though not so much in a Darwinian
sense as in an imagined pyramid or hierarchy of forms. According to Allen’s
researches, the purpose behind creation - and there is a purpose - is for matter
and spirit to ascend, through a process of cosmic fusion, to a final termination
in God.
In terms of physics, this is evidenced in various ways. Gravitation, for
example, is seen as "an expression of the inborn desire of all creation to
become fused into One Harmonious Whole." As part of a social vision, spirit
itself is described as a "degree of unselfishness" that proceeds by
way of the pyramid concept of reincarnation to a fusion with the One, a state of
Total Unselfishness.
These ideas are expressed in Lunar Encounter by a race of highly
advanced aliens known as Matusians. The enlightened Matusians have been secretly
observing how well human civilization handles the transition to the Atomic Age.
The answer seems to be not very well, and it isn’t long before the forces of
hate and selfishness (evil, in Allen's theology) are allied against the those who have seen the light in a
battle over the fate of the human race.
As with most philosophical
novels Lunar Encounter suffers from an excess of formality. The dialogue
is sometimes stiff, as its primary purpose is to develop ideas rather than reveal
character. Characters are all introduced by
their first and last names, with their height and weight occasionally included.
And the rigor of Matusian principles seems almost aggressive. They
even have a way to get rid of obnoxious and dangerous political leaders on Earth
by use of "batteries of powerful stun beam projectors and gas launchers,
which can temporarily paralyze the population of entire cities, thus
facilitating the prompt removal from office of those deemed to be a threat to
world peace."
Fortunately, Lunar Encounter has a fast-moving and socially concerned
narrative that helps to drive things along. The
theories it presents definitely require an open mind, but those interested in new
ideas should find it an interesting and provocative intellectual adventure.
Notes:
Review first published online August 9, 2000.
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