Rosencrantz & Guildenstern, Ltd.

This article marks the last of the reposts from the old R&G, Ltd. site.  I intend to continue this series, by the way, and post reviews of the next two books in the Martian Trilogy by Edgar Rice Burroughs. – duane

August 5, 2007
Review – A Princess of Mars
Filed under: Literature, SciFi/Fantasy — duane @ 7:26 am

Edgar Rice Burroughs is better known outside of scifi and fantasy circles as the creator of Tarzan, but like many writers during the pulp era, he wrote in several different genres. In scifi, his principle contribution has been Barsoom novels, which contributed to a genre of pulp fiction known as “sword and planet” stories. While these type of stories are often called science fiction, they have more in common with fantasy; what little science they contain is very fuzzy and is basically magic in scientific trappings.

Science, however, is not the focus of Barsoom novels. They are pure adventure, set in a Mars that is as fantastical as Middle Earth. Just as Middle Earth is a fantasy version of ancient Europe, so Barsoom is a fantasy version of Mars. That’s not a problem, however, if you approach the novels appropriately. If you’re expecting Kim Stanley Robinson, you will be disappointed. But if you want to experience a fast moving adventure story, then The Martian Tales Trilogy will not disappoint.

This particular volume that I’m reviewing contains the first three of Burrough’s Barsoom novels: A Princess of Mars (serialized in 1912 and published as a novel in 1917), The Gods of Mars (1913/1918), and The Warlord of Mars (1913-14/1919). It was published by Barnes & Noble, and runs about $9.95. This is perfect, because given how fast these novels read, I could move on to the next right after.

All three novels focus on John Carter and are told from his perspective. Burrough’s sets the first two novels up with introductions, explaining how he obtained the manuscripts from his Uncle Jack, as John Carter is known by his earthly family, and then begin with the first-person narration of Carter.

Burrough’s Carter is basically a demi-god of sorts. He is ageless, always appearing about 30 years of age, and while he claims Virginia as his home (where he is claimed as family by the Carter family), he has no memory of his childhood. A Princess of Mars begins after the American Civil War. Carter and a friend have gone to Arizona to make their fortune in gold. Carter’s friend ends up killed by Apaches, and Carter himself barely escapes into a cave. While in the cave, Carter is struck by paralysis, while the pursuing Apaches are scared away by some unknown fear. Carter, struggling to move, ends up out of his body (which remains in the cave). He goes outside, and focusing on the planet Mars, finds himself transported almost instantly through space to arrive on the Mars.
Carter’s advent on Mars, as well as his (lack of) backstory, begin to set up the fantastical elements of the novel. No explanation is ever really attempted (the cave may have had some mystical element, but this is unclear), and it’s not really the point anyway; the point is to get Carter to Mars as easily as possible.

Once upon Mars, called Barsoom by the native peoples, Carter almost immediately encounters his first Martians, the green men, who are ten-feet tall with four arms and tusks. It is here that Carter discovers that because of the lesser gravity of Mars, he is able to perform superhuman leaps and has superhuman strength. These abilities work to his advantage with the green men, and he is able to win a certain position among them; although he is a prisoner, his actions against two of the greens elevates him to the position of chieftain among this green-man tribe, the Tharks.

Carter’s time with the green men results in the formation of several important relationships that influence the rest of the novels. First, his feats of strength gain him the respect of Tars Tarkus, a powerful chieftain of the Tharks. He also comes into contact with Dejah Thoris, the incomparably beautiful princess of Helium. The people of Helium are more like Carter, but their skin is a light copper, and Burroughs refers to them as the red men of Mars. Carter is pretty much smitten with Dejah from the first, and his relationship with her becomes his primary motivation through the rest of the novels. Another relationship that Carter establishes while with the Tharks is that with Woola. Woola is a calot, basically a ten-legged creature with a large, frog-like mouth that contains three rows of teeth; the calot takes the place of the dog on Barsoom.

During this part of the novel, several of Carter’s character traits are revealed. Burroughs manages to avoid making Carter a totally perfect (and therefore boring) character. Although Carter is noble, he has devoted so much of his time to the warrior profession that he lacks an understanding of women. This lack of understanding threatens his burgeoning relationship with Dejah a few times, and it is only through conversation with Sola, a green woman who was charged with Carter’s care. We also see Carter’s more caring side with animals, especially with Whoola, whom he wins the undying affection of through his kind treatment; Carter also manages to tame the wild thoats (like eight-legged, ferocious horses) through kindness. Prior to Carter’s arrival, the Tharks were accustomed to using violence to get the thoats obedience, but Carter demonstrates that through kindness, perfect obedience can be won.

Once the basic relationships are established, the story moves on. Carter must first free Dejah and Sola from the Tharks, whose jeddak (supreme ruler) is consider horrible even by green-men standards, and then from Zodanga, a country of red-men who are rivals to Helium. Zodanga, taking advantage of the Heliumatic Navy’s search for Dejah, attacked Helium and comes close to victory before Carter is able to turn the tide against them. Carter is (naturally) successful, and he and Dejah are married. Carter remains on Barsoom for ten years, and Dejah becomes “pregnant” with their child (the people of Barsoom actually hatch from eggs). All would be wonderful, except that the atmosphere factory that keeps Mars alive stops working. Carter is able to save the day (using knowledge he learned earlier in the novel), but ends up back on Earth after collapsing from lack of air. He then spends the next ten years on Earth before being able to return to Barsoom at the beginning of the next novel, The Gods of Mars.

Like many adventure novels, A Princess of Mars has certain morals or themes that are often touched upon. Carter is an outsider to Barsoomian culture, and as such he doesn’t take for granted their traditions and customs. While among the Tharks, Carter is able to teach them that the softer virtues of love and kindness are not signs of weakness. This is especially true in his training of the thoats, and in his discovery of the relationship between Sola and Tars Tarkas. His extension of friendship to Tars Tarkas also has a profound impact upon the Thark, who realizes that the red men of Helium do not have to be his enemies; this racial theme is continued in even more detail in the next two novels. Carter inspires Tars Tarkas to unite many hordes of the green men, used to fighting amongst themselves, to attack Zodanga and thus save Helium. While this enlightenment only permanently extends to the Tharks (the other green hordes being concerned only with plunder), it is a great achievement, and Tars Tarkas becomes a friend of the red men of Helium.

These virtues that Carter preaches are not just words, however. Carter is primarily a man of action, and thus his ideals of friendship, nobility, love, and kindness are given strength because of his actions. It is by what he does that people come to believe that he says. I think that may be one of the strongest themes of A Princess of Mars, as well as the other two books: show what you believe by what you do. The moralizing may be a bit heavy handed at times, but given the rollicking good adventure story, that can be forgiven.
All in all, A Princess of Mars may not hold up well today as science fiction, but it continues to be a good fantasy-adventure story, so long as you don’t take it, or yourself, too seriously.

I’ll continue this review of The Martian Trilogy with Part II: The Gods of Mars, and Part III: The Warlord of Mars.