The Last Starship from Earth by John Boyd
"The Last Starship from Earth" is a thought-provoking novel by Boyd that explores themes of love, rebellion, and societal control within a dystopian setting. The story follows Haldane IV, a mathematician confined within a genetically controlled caste system governed by religious rules. His forbidden romance with Helix, a poetry student from a different caste, leads them to challenge the oppressive norms of their society. As they navigate their secret meetings and delve into the poetry of classical writers, Haldane becomes increasingly aware of the injustices around him.
The narrative intensifies when they are caught, resulting in dire consequences, including exile to the harshly depicted planet Hell. Contrary to its name, Hell surprises Haldane upon arrival, revealing a vibrant community marked by individualism. The plot thickens as Haldane is drawn into a time-altering mission with the enigmatic Fairweather II, aiming to reshape a pivotal moment in history. This journey raises profound questions about the origins of their society's rigid structure and the possibility of redemption for both Haldane and Helix. The novel ultimately invites readers to reflect on the intersections of love, identity, and the potential for change within a constrained world.
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The Last Starship from Earth
First published: 1968
Type of work: Novel
Type of plot: Science fiction—dystopia
Time of work: The twentieth century
Locale: San Francisco Bay, California, and a prison planet called Hell
The Plot
John Boyd’s first novel, The Last Starship from Earth, depicts the story of Haldane IV, a brilliant mathematician at Berkeley who has grown up within the confines of a rigidly separated, genetically controlled caste system under religious rule. He meets Helix, a student of poetry, and falls utterly in love with her. Because they belong to two different castes, the relationship is forbidden by the State. When they are caught, they face a possible punishment of being sent to the ice-age planet of Hell.
In this negative vision of Earth, society is broken into categories of nonprofessionals (prols) and professionals, then further into more detailed subject classes, the three most powerful being the departments of sociology, psychology, and mathematics. In meeting Helix, Hal-dane IV becomes interested not only in this highly unusual woman but also generally in the field of poetry. His subsequent obsession with the texts of classical poets (William Wordsworth, Lord Byron, and John Milton) exposes his mind to new thoughts completely foreign to his mathematical background. Haldane IV and Helix meet secretly on a weekly basis and explore the long-hidden poems of the brilliant Fairweather I, designer of the electronic pope and creator of the possibility of space travel. They ultimately reach disturbing conclusions about this State hero and begin to question the wisdom of the State.
Haldane’s father dies, presumably as a result of the effects of Haldane’s disclosure of his relationship to Helix and the ensuing argument. Helix and Haldane finally cross the line of deviationism by engaging in a sexual relationship.
Inevitably, the two are caught. Helix is pregnant. Hal-dane is given a trial in which jurors from each of the professional fields come to the conclusion that beyond his deviationism, Haldane IV has the so-called Fairweather Syndrome. The term “Fairweather Syndrome” is derived not from Fairweather I but from his son, Fairweather II, who had led a rebellion against the State and shortly thereafter was exiled to the planet Hell. The Fairweather Syndrome translates into a crime against the State, the punishment for which is exile to Hell. Haldane travels on a space ship, experiencing at first hand the humiliation of what he previously had seen only in terror-provoking television displays.
A surprising sequence of events unfolds when he reaches his destination. Helix is reunited with Haldane, and Hell turns out to be a pleasant place to live, albeit odd, with raw individualism running rampant. Furthermore, Fairweather II is alive and well, and he happens to have fathered Helix. Helix had grown up on Hell but was sent back to Earth as an agent for the planet to seek out the talents of young mathematicians, who would be needed on Hell. The meeting between Helix and Hal-dane IV was not accidental.
Fairweather II convinces Haldane to travel through time, returning to Earth during the time of Christ to alter history. Fairweather II believes that the source of the ill-conceived State was the fact that Jesus did not die on the cross but had the time to create and build his own church. The result of this church is the rigid caste system of the twentieth century, controlled by the church and the sciences. Haldane is successful in his mission and continues to live on Earth as a “Wandering Jew,” waiting until technology has developed to the extent that he may one day return to Helix on Hell.