A Touch of Sturgeon by Theodore Sturgeon
"A Touch of Sturgeon" is a collection of eight previously published stories that explore a range of narrative styles and themes, from action and adventure to deep psychological and moral dilemmas. The stories vary in approach, showcasing concrete external conflict alongside introspective narratives that delve into human relationships and existential questions. For instance, "Killdozer," a tale of survival, features a group of men battling a rogue bulldozer imbued with a destructive electromagnetic force, highlighting themes of innovation and unintended consequences. Similarly, "Slow Sculpture" presents a transformative relationship between a woman recovering from illness and an inventor, focusing on their shared growth and the impact of societal pressures on creativity.
The anthology also includes philosophical reflections, exemplified in "The Golden Helix," where humanity's journey leads to a devolution into simpler forms, ultimately raising questions about the essence of love and existence. Overall, "A Touch of Sturgeon" invites readers to engage with diverse plots and characters, encouraging reflection on moral values, societal challenges, and the nature of human existence. This collection provides a rich tapestry of storytelling that appeals to those interested in the intersection of science fiction, philosophy, and human experience.
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A Touch of Sturgeon
First published: 1987
Type of work: Stories
Type of plot: Science fiction—extrapolatory
Time of work: The present and an age of interplanetary travel
Locale: Various locations on Earth and on other planets
The Plot
The eight previously published stories in A Touch of Sturgeon vary in plot from the concrete depiction of external action and adventure to the human-relationship-centered, inner-world fiction of psycho-logical and moral dilemmas, and to the generalized narration of evolutionary philosophy and mysticism. For example, the 1944 story “Killdozer” is an action story of eight men fighting a bulldozer run amok on an otherwise deserted island. A construction crew arrives to test innovative construction techniques by building an airfield. By destroying a temple-like creation of a prior civilization, they unwittingly release a mysterious, powerful, electromagnetic force. Sentient but destructive, it installs itself in the bulldozer that destroyed its habitat and proceeds brutally to kill the construction workers. After finding the remains of the fifth worker, “all of twelve square feet of him, ground and churned and rolled out into a torn-up patch of earth,” two of the remaining workers deduce that the entity is electromagnetic in nature, given its retreat in apparent fear from an active arc welding generator the men have. The men succeed in enticing the bulldozer to a wet area of the beach and, using water as a ground, manage to electrocute the entity.
A different type of plot, used in a majority of the stories, is the psychological and moral dilemma dramatization exemplified in “Slow Sculpture” (1970). A young woman with a malignant tumor is cured by an inventor who, through his bonsai tree, unwittingly teaches her how to accept the complex adjustments involved in survival. In turn, she teaches him how to overcome his hatred of an industrial world so controlled by the capitalistic profit motive that it buys his inventions, such as a pollution-eliminating, fuel-saving automobile muffler, expressly to suppress them. Use of the inventions would conflict with entrenched monetary interests—in the muffler’s case, those of oil companies not wanting a reduction in fossil fuel consumption and of automobile companies not wanting to expend funds in altering mass production to install the new device. She also teaches him to overcome his fear of people and to realize that “the way you do something, when people are concerned, is more important than what you do, if you want results.”
Less frequently exemplified in the collection is the evolutionary, philosophical, and mystical speculation of “The Golden Helix” (1954). One of only two space travel stories in the volume, it involves humans who are guided to a strangely savage but beautiful planet by a mysterious, God-like, helix-shaped force. Once on the planet, humanity devolves quickly. Reaching their apelike ancestral stage within two generations and no longer able to speak or to create intelligently, the beings nevertheless possess the human essence of love for one another. Eventually, they devolve into plant form. As seeds, they are gathered by the helix-shaped, golden force and scattered throughout various regions of the universe, to re-evolve and bring their special, emotional essence to “worlds worthy of what is human in humanity.”