This is one of those books that proves something: if you want to write about important issues such as morality, sexuality, human relationships, and politics, you don’t necessarily need to write an essay. In fact, “Stranger in a Strange Land” is politics and philosophy disguised as science fiction. I feel extremely inspired when I can find some deep reflections hidden in what seems to be “just a story”; but in this novel, one doesn’t need to look very hard to find the philosophical themes.
“Stranger in a Strange Land” tells the story of Michael Valentine Smith, “Mike”, the son of two components of the first human expedition to Mars, born on the red planet and raised there by the martians. Years later Mike is found and brought back to Earth, where he becomes the object of attention of all major world governments, each of which tries to manipulate him for its own benefit. But as the plot unfolds, Mike is able to escape from the grasps of the powers-that-be and find his own way on Earth; in a series of picturesque adventures, he ends up founding a new religion (the “Church of All Worlds”), and gathering a loyal group of followers around him. Through his Church, he promotes psychic and spiritual development, the learning of paranormal abilities such as telepathy and telekinesis, but also “immoral” practices such as nudity and sexual promiscuity. Quickly, this provokes violent reactions from both powerful governments and ignorant people; finally, Mike is reached by an angry mob in a hotel and offers himself to them, being murdered in the act.
The disturbing and contradictory aspects of this novel should not prevent the reader from finding very interesting concepts and suggestions here. The literary trick used by Heinlein to present new ideas is obvious: the leading character is a human person, but he has been raised in Mars by alien beings. Thus, he can be depicted as a different human who has incorporated elements of a totally distinct culture, and the author plays with this differences to introduce some challenging ideas about society and religion. To me, the most interesting characteristic of the fictitious “Martian culture” is the high level of connectedness that the martians enjoy among them. Telepathy, as well as communicating with the dead, are normal features in their society; they are so connected, so close to each other, that paradoxically sexual interaction is not needed anymore. This is a very interesting hint on the correlation between sexual attraction, polarity, and diversity, as well of a striking presentation of evolution as connectedness.
Connection is so important for Martians, that they have an all-important word to describe it: grok. On Mars, “to grok” means:
to understand so thoroughly that the observer becomes a part of the observed
This is a concept that will be familiar to any Yoga practitioner, since it could be considered as an approximate definition of Samadhi, or “absorption” – the eight and ultimate step of Patañjali’s Ashtanga Yoga. So, connection and understanding are perceived as two sides of the same coin – a process of becoming closer with the object of our attention, to the point of merging with it.
When Mike discovers sexuality, a powerful human dynamic that does not exist on Mars, he ends up considering it the “ultimate grokking” between human beings: lovers are merging into each other and approximating a state of fusion, or complete connection, which equals complete understanding. But from his perspective, there is no reason to limit this connection to one partner – this is why Mike’s “cult” rapidly becomes a haven of “free love” where group sex, partner switching, and other expressions of sexuality are constantly practiced. This sexual utopia is maybe naive, but it’s important to remember that, however inspiring, this is still a work of fiction and there is no need to share all of Heinlein’s explicit or implicit views.
In this long book, deep thoughts and stimulating reflections are consistently mixed with a pop-style, often over-the-top narrative that can be confusing or irritating at times. It can be hard sometimes to progress through the story, and many of the book’s good ideas could have probably been condensed in a much shorter novel. Nevertheless, I find a great inspiration in those works of fiction that are able to present innovative views on important themes like spirituality, society and sexuality. It’s a relief that we don’t always have to resort to great classics to find some bits of truth – in fact, it’s possible to spot some rare gems of knowledge even in the most apparently ordinary novel. This helps us remind that we are all human beings in a spiritual quest, whether we know it or not – and each one of us, through his or her own work, has the possibility to help others understand a little bit more about themselves.