A Voyage to Arcturus

A Voyage to Arcturus
Cover of the first edition
AuthorDavid Lindsay
LanguageEnglish
GenreFantasy, science fiction
PublisherMethuen & Co. Ltd.
Publication date
1920
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
Media typePrint (Hardcover and Paperback)
Pages303 pp (first edition hardcover)
823.912
LC ClassPR6023.I58115 V68
TextA Voyage to Arcturus at Wikisource

A Voyage to Arcturus is a novel by the Scottish writer David Lindsay, first published in 1920. An interstellar voyage is the framework for a narrative of a journey through fantastic landscapes. The story is set at Tormance, an imaginary planet orbiting Arcturus, which in the novel is a binary star system, consisting of the stars Branchspell and Alppain. The lands through which the characters travel represent philosophical systems or states of mind as the main character, Maskull, searches for the meaning of life. The book combines fantasy, philosophy, and science fiction in an exploration of the nature of good and evil and their relationship with existence. Described by critic, novelist, and philosopher Colin Wilson as the "greatest novel of the twentieth century",[1] it was a central influence on C. S. Lewis' Space Trilogy,[2] and through him on J. R. R. Tolkien, who said he read the book "with avidity".[3] Clive Barker called it "a masterpiece" and "an extraordinary work ... quite magnificent".[4]

The book sold poorly during Lindsay's lifetime, but was republished in 1946 and many times thereafter. It has been translated into at least six languages. Critics such as the novelist Michael Moorcock have noted that the book is unusual, but that it has been highly influential with its qualities of "commitment to the Absolute" and "God-questioning genius".[5]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Wilson was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lewis was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Tolkien was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Barker was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Moorcock was invoked but never defined (see the help page).