Mars trilogy

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Title Red Mars
Red Mars
Cover of Red Mars
Author Kim Stanley Robinson
Cover artist Don Dixon
Country United States
Language English
Series Mars Trilogy
Genre(s) Science Fiction
Publisher Spectra
Released January 1, 1993
Media type Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages 519 pp (Hardback)
ISBN ISBN 0-553-09204-9
Preceded by none
Followed by Green Mars
Title Green Mars
Author Kim Stanley Robinson
Cover artist Don Dixon
Country United States
Language English
Series Mars Trilogy
Genre(s) Science Fiction
Publisher Spectra
Released March 1, 1994
Media type Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages 535 pp (Hardback)
ISBN ISBN 0-553-09640-0
Preceded by Red Mars
Followed by Blue Mars
Title Blue Mars
Author Kim Stanley Robinson
Cover artist Don Dixon
Country United States
Language English
Series Mars Trilogy
Genre(s) Science Fiction
Publisher Spectra
Released June 1, 1996
Media type Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages 609 pp (Hardback)
ISBN ISBN 0-553-10144-7
Preceded by Green Mars
Followed by none
Title The Martians
Author Kim Stanley Robinson
Cover artist Don Dixon
Country United States
Language English
Series Mars Trilogy
Genre(s) Science Fiction
Publisher Spectra
Released September 1, 1999
Media type Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages 352 pp (Hardback)
ISBN ISBN 0-553-80117-1

The Mars trilogy is a series of award-winning science fiction novels by Kim Stanley Robinson, chronicling the settlement and terraforming of the planet Mars. The three novels are Red Mars (1992), Green Mars (1993) and Blue Mars (1996). An additional collection of short stories and background information was published as The Martians (1999). The viewpoint shifts in each chapter between various characters.

Contents

[edit] Awards

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

[edit] Plot

Red Mars starts in 2026 with the first colonial voyage to Mars. Later, "the First Hundred" colonists (composed for the most part of Russians and Americans) establish the first settlement on Mars (called "Underhill") and lay the groundwork for more scientists and engineers to follow. However, due to the greed of the transnational corporations, which dominate and control the nation states of Earth, the new Martian towns become overcrowded and undermaintained. Several cases of sabotage of terraformation infrastructure occur, blamed on anti-terraforming forces. The situation results in a violent revolution in 2061, in which many of the First Hundred are killed, and much of Mars' infrastructure, notably the space elevator, is destroyed. Most of the surviving members of the First Hundred are forced into hiding in the "underground".

Green Mars takes its title from the stage of terraforming that has taken place allowing plants to grow. It picks up the story from Red Mars, following the lives of the remaining First Hundred (and their children and grandchildren). The "underground" starts to develop ideas of a new type of society, an anti-thesis of the metanational order at that time. This culminates into the Dorsa Brevia agreement, in which nearly all the "underground" factions take part. Preparations are made for a second revolution beginning in the 2120s.

The story follows the lives and experiences of several characters spanning several generations and several factions. The story starts with focus on the lives of the defeated rebels from the 2061 revolution. They are portrayed as living in hidden shelter or in semi-hidden (above ground) shelters collectively called the demimonde.

Hiroko Ai's philosophy of Aerophany is explored further, and Zygote (the hidden sanctuary of Hiroko's followers and supporters) is portrayed along with the childhood of several of the nissei.

As the book follows the characters across the martian landscape, details about the martian landscape is explained in great detail. As Sax Russell's character infiltrates the transnat terraforming project, the newly evolving martian biosphere is explained at great length.

A mainstay of the novel is a detailed analysis of philosophical, economical, and geological experiences of the characters.

The story weaves back and forth from character to character trying to provide a picture of Mars as seen by them.

Blue Mars takes its title from the stage of terraforming that has taken place allowing atmospheric pressure and temperature to increase so that liquid water can exist on the planet's surface, forming rivers and seas. It follows on from the end of Green Mars and has a much wider scope than the previous two books, covering an entire century after the second revolution and showing the spread of human settlements across the solar system—a process Robinson terms the Accelerando. One major event is a sudden, catastrophic rise in Earth's global sea levels, caused not by any greenhouse effect, but by the eruption of a chain of volcanoes underneath the ice of west Antarctica, melting it all away.

The Martians is a collection of short stories that takes place over the timespan of the original trilogy of novels, as well as some stories that take place in an alternate version of the novels where the First Hundred's mission was one of exploration rather than colonization. Buried in the stories are several hints about the eventual fate of the Martian terraforming program.

The books also speculate on the colonization of other planets and moons in the solar system, and include descriptions of cities on Callisto, Mercury, Titania, and Venus.

A great portion of Blue Mars is concerned with the effects of extreme longevity on its fictional protagonists, most of whom have lived over two hundred years as a result of repeated longevity treatments. In particular, Robinson speculates on the psychological effects of ultra-longevity including memory loss, personality change, mental instability and boredom.

[edit] Corporations

Metanational corporations, nicknamed "metanats", are extremely powerful transnational corporations that first emerge in the mid-21st Century. These multinational corporations have grown so large as a result of globalisation that they have sufficient economic power to take over or strongly manipulate national governments, initially only relatively small Third World governments, but later larger developed governments too. In Robinson's future history, the metanational corporation hence becomes the inheritor to the nation-state, with the giant corporations continuing to attempt takeovers of competitors in order to become the sole controller of the interplanetary market. As the Mars trilogy draws to a close, in the mid 22nd Century, the metanational corporations are forced by a global catastrophe to concede more democratic powers to their workforces.

The metanational corporations include Praxis, a largely benevolent and relatively democratic firm, and Subarashii, which plays a large role in the maltreatment of the denizens of Mars.

[edit] Characters

[edit] John Boone

Mars trilogy character
John Boone
Position First man on Mars
Hometown Minnesota, USA
Birth 1982
Death 2053
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred

An American astronaut, and the first man on Mars. He returns from Mars a public hero, and uses his considerable influence to lobby for a second mission, this time one of colonization. Boone received too much radiation on his first trip to make the second one, according to medical regulations; however, his celebrity status allows him to skirt this. On the second voyage, Boone is one of the 'First Hundred' colonists sent to permanently colonize Mars. His accomplishments and natural charm yield him an informal leadership role. In the first chapter of Red Mars, John Boone is assassinated by fundamentalists acting under the aegis of Frank Chalmers. The narrative then steps back to the First Hundred's voyage to Mars aboard the spaceship Ares. His ideas continue as a point of reference for the remainder of the trilogy. Boone's character is complex. In one light, Boone is a stereotypically simple, heroic figure, an everyman hero: his first words on his first trip to Mars are "Well, here we are". He is almost uniformly cheerful and good-natured, and approaches everything he undertakes with hale bonhomie. But later in Red Mars, Robinson switches to Boone's point of view, rather than showing him through others' eyes. This section reveals that late in life, Boone is addicted to omegendorph, a fictional drug that is based on endorphins in the human brain. In addition, it reveals that at least some of his seeming simplicity might simply be an act designed to further his political goals. Overall, Boone is presented as larger-than-life — his flaws as well as his virtues.

[edit] Frank Chalmers

Mars trilogy character
Frank Chalmers
Position Head of the First Hundred
Hometown Savannah, Georgia/Jacksonville Beach Florida, USA
Birth 1976
Death 2061
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred

Head of the American contingent. He is machiavellian in his use of power. However, his cynicism is later shown to be a form of self-defense; Chalmers is at least partly driven by a hidden idealistic side. He became romantically involved with Maya Toitovna, the leader of the Russian contingent of the mission. During the second-half of the voyage to Mars, she became involved with John Boone. Already bitter that John was allowed to join the colonization mission despite his manipulations, Frank further despised John because of Maya's affection. His dislike culminates in his involvement in a plot to assassinate John, which ultimately succeeds. Frank later flees with Maya and other members of the Hundred to join the hidden colonists at the polar ice cap. He dies trying to save them when they get trapped in a flood unleashed from underground aquifers.

[edit] Maya Toitovna

Mars trilogy character
Maya Toitovna
Position Head of Russian Contingent
Hometown Moscow, Russia
Birth August 5, 1984
Death UNKNOWN
Gender female
Political Affiliation First Hundred

An emotional woman who is at the centre of a love triangle between Boone and Chalmers. She begins as head of the Russian contingent. The novels hint she used both wit and seduction to rise through the ranks of the Russian space agency to become the leader of the first colonization mission. After the first revolution she flees with other members of the Hundred to the hidden colony in the pole. She becomes a school teacher for the children of the hidden colonists, but later becomes a powerful political force. After the deaths of Chalmers and Boone, she falls in love with Michel Duval. She suffers heavily from amnesia and a bipolar disorder with growing age.

[edit] Nadia Chernyshevski

Mars trilogy character
Nadia Chernyshevski
Position Head Engineer
Hometown Siberia
Birth
Death
Gender female
Political Affiliation First Hundred; Martian Republic

A Russian engineer who started out building nuclear reactors in Siberia. During the voyage and initial exploration of Mars, she does her best to avoid the squabbles of the other members of the Hundred. Instead, she busies herself by building the first permanent habitation of Mars, Underhill, using programmed automated robots. She also helps to construct a new and larger habitat and research facility in a nearby canyon. In the later books she becomes a reluctant politician. Nadia is in love with Arkady Bogdanov and is devastated when he is killed. In Green Mars she falls in love with Art Randolph, with whom she eventually starts a family. After Martian independence, she becomes the first "President" of Mars.

[edit] Arkady Bogdanov

Mars trilogy character
Arkady Bogdanov
Position Head of Phobos Detail
Hometown Russia
Birth
Death 2061
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred

An engineer with anarchist/Marxist leanings, possibly based on Russian futurists Alexander Bogdanov (the character's ancestor) and Arkady Strugatsky. He is seen by many other members of the First Hundred, particular Boyle, as a troublemaker. He leads the team which establishes an outpost on the moon Phobos and leads an uprising against the transnational corporation towards the end of first book. Like Boone's, his political ideas (known as "Bogdanovism") weigh heavily on characters later in the book. In love with Nadia Chernyshevski, he is killed during the first revolution of 2061.

[edit] Saxifrage "Sax" Russell

Mars trilogy character
Sax Russell
Position Head of the Greens
Hometown Boulder, Colorado
Birth ~1980
Death
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred; Green

American physicist. He is a brilliant and creative scientist and is greatly respected for his intellectual gifts. However, he is lacking in social skills and often finds it difficult to understand and relate to other people. Russell is a leader of the Green movement (a movement whose goal is to terraform Mars). During Green Mars, Sax suffers aphasia (likely Broca's aphasia) after suffering a stroke while being brutally tortured by government security forces. Originally apolitical, this event and a growing attachment to Mars itself leads Russell to become the physical architect of the second revolution. Secretly in love with Ann Clayborne. Saxifrage means "Stonebreaker" (Russell is a terraformer) and is the name for a plant that grows between stones.

[edit] Ann Clayborne

Mars trilogy character
Ann Clayborne
Position Head of the Reds
Hometown
Birth 1980
Death
Gender female
Political Affiliation First Hundred; Reds

American geologist, who wants Mars preserved in its pristine state. She becomes a leader of the Red movement which is dedicated to this goal. She is frequently seen as bitter and preferably lives in solitude on extensive trips all over Mars. She has a hate-love relationship with Saxifrage Russell, an American physicist and leader of the Green Mars movement that wants to terraform Mars. After she shows signs of aging and her death seems imminent, Russel has the longevity cure administered to her (she being in a coma). She develops a more complex personality afterwards - sometimes remaining close to her isolationist position, sometimes appreciating the cure and the "blue" Mars.

[edit] Hiroko Ai

Mars trilogy character
Hiroko Ai
Position Head of the Farm Team
Hometown Hokkaidō, Japan
Birth ~1990
Death
Gender female
Political Affiliation First Hundred; Green

A Japanese expert on biology, agriculture, and ecological systems. It was Hiroko who smuggled Desmond 'Coyote' Hawkins onto the Ares (the two were friends and lovers as students in London). She is the charismatic leader of the "farm team", one of the important work groups and cliques among the first hundred. She thus becomes the focus of many of the trilogy's central themes. Most importantly, she teaches the importance of maintaining a respectful relation to one's planet. On Mars, this is called the Areophany. In the secret colony, Zygote, which Hiroko established, the first generation of children, the 'ectogenes', are all the product of artificial insemination outside of any human body; Hiroko uses her own ova as the female genetic material, and uses (often unaware) male members of the first hundred to fertilize these eggs. She is seldom at the center of the narrative, but her influence is pervasive. Her profound absence is on the scale of John Galt in Atlas Shrugged or Harry Lime in The Third Man. She disappears again in Green Mars. Her ultimate fate is left unresolved.

[edit] Michel Duval

Mars trilogy character
Michel Duval
Position First Hundred Psycologist
Hometown Provence, France
Birth
Death 2206
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred; Green

A French psychologist, assigned to monitor the psychological welfare of the First Hundred first in their training in Antarctica and then was later sent to Mars. He is often treated more as an observer than as a member of the group. His aloof personality enforces this ostracism and also subverts his relationships with others. Two girlfriends leave him because "he was not there." He subsequently is invited by Hiroko to flee with the botany group to become the first hidden colonists. He desperately wants to go back to Provence as he knew it, although after visiting as a part of the Diplomatic Mission to Earth he became even more homesick. Falls in love with Maya Toitovna and dies after she displays signs of very heavy amnesia.

[edit] Vlad Taneev

Mars trilogy character
Vlad Taneev
Position Head of Medical Team
Hometown Russia
Birth 1968
Death
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred

Russian biological scientist; nearly sixty when arriving on Mars, he is the oldest of the First Hundred. Taneev is the head of all medical treatment and research projects on Mars. He became famous as the creator of a gerontological treatment to stave off old age, and for consistently bringing out improvements to the Treatments. He lived in Acheron in the North of Mars before fleeing to the Underground after the First (failed) Revolution. He lived in a Ménage à trois with Ursula and Marina, the exact nature of which is never resolved.

[edit] Phyllis Boyle

Mars trilogy character
Phyllis Boyle
Position Head of the UNMO
Hometown USA
Birth
Death
Gender female
Political Affiliation First Hundred; UN

American Christian geologist, who favors corporate control of Mars. Her harsh personality does not win her many friends among the First Hundred. She eventually sides against most of the first hundred with the UN Mars Agency. She ruled Mars from the Clark Space Elevator with an iron fist until the first, failed revolution sent it spinning off into the outer Solar System. She survived and was able to bring the station back to the inner systems. She engaged in a brief sexual relationship with Saxifrage Russell, who despised her, while he was working under an alias. Boyle is killed by Maya Toitovna during the rescue of Saxifrage Russell from Kasei Vallis.

[edit] Desmond "the Coyote" Hawkins

Mars trilogy character
Coyote
Position Stowaway
Hometown Trinidad
Birth
Death
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred; Green

The Trinidadian stowaway. He is a friend and supporter of Hiroko, in addition to being a fervent anarchist. Present in Red Mars only as a shadowy figure who blends effortlessly into the Martian background, he isn't even identified as anything more than "the Coyote" until the beginning of Green Mars. He becomes a leading figure in the "underground," and an unofficial coordinator of a developing gift economy.

[edit] Children of the First Hundred

Since the trilogy covers over 200 years of human history, later immigrants and the children and grandchildren of the first hundred eventually become important characters in their own rights.

[edit] Nirgal

Mars trilogy character
Nirgal
Position Nissei
Hometown Zygote, Mars
Birth 2075
Death
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred; MarsFirst; Green; Nissei

The son of Hiroko and the Coyote is raised communally by Hiroko and her followers in Zygote. He is a good-natured wanderer who eventually becomes a political leader advocating ties with Earth. He is famous for his running technique that allows him to run all day for days on end. Nirgal was part of a mission that was sent to Earth where he almost died. He was named after a Babylonian wargod, since the planet Mars was named after a Roman wargod.

[edit] Jackie Boone

Mars trilogy character
Jackie Boone
Position Head of the Free Mars Party
Hometown Zygote, Mars
Birth 2075
Death
Gender female
Political Affiliation Free Mars

The granddaughter of Hiroko and John Boone (raised with Nirgal), emerges as an isolationist leader, presented as manipulative. After an influential political career she steps down from Free Mars and joins an expedition to an extrasolar planet near Aldeberan.

[edit] Peter Clayborne

Mars trilogy character
Peter Clayborn
Position Nissei
Hometown
Birth 2040s
Death
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred; Green

Peter is the first of the new generation of children born on Mars. He is also Ann's son. Being one of the first children born on Mars, Peter holds a position of older brother to all the following first generation. Many revolutionary and later political decisions of the MarsFirst movement are influenced by his opinions and judgement. Part time he works as an engineer and a "green."

[edit] Other characters

[edit] Arthur "Art" Randolph

Mars trilogy character
Art Randolph
Position Praxis Liaison to Martian Underground
Hometown California
Birth 2049
Death
Gender male
Political Affiliation First Hundred; MarsFirst

A representative of the Praxis corporation sent to contact the Martian underground movement on a quasi-diplomatic mission. The Praxis Corporation is an attempt to create a system of "ecological capitalism" based on democratic corporations; like the other "metanationals," it takes on intensive economic and political ties with governments, but Praxis aims for partnerships rather than exploitive relationships.

[edit] Kasei

Kasei is son of Hiroko and John Boone, father of Jackie Boone. Kasei is the leader of Kakaze, a radical Red faction. His name is Japanese for the planet Mars.

[edit] Zeyk Tuqa and his wife Nazik

They are Muslim nomads. Zeyk's eidetic memory becomes a minor plot point.

[edit] William Fort

He is founder of Praxis, embraces a fusion of Eastern and Western lifestyles.

[edit] Zoya "Zo" Boone

She is daughter of Jackie. Via the gerontological longevity treatment, she has feline traits (purring) inserted into her genome. In Blue Mars, she travels the solar system running political errands for Jackie, although the two do not get along particularly well. Her character is portrayed as hedonistic, making sexual satisfaction a priority and seemingly having little regard for the feelings of others. On the other hand, she apparently has a conscience, risking her life to rescue a man on Mercury and later dying in an attempt to save a distressed flier.

[edit] Nikki

She is daughter of Nadia and Art

[edit] Quotes

  • Zoya Boone: "It's like a rainbow. Without an observer at a twenty-three-degree angle to the light reflecting off a cloud of spherical droplets, there is no rainbow. The whole universe is like that. Our spirits stand at a twenty-three-degree angle to the universe. There is some new thing created at the contact of photon and retina, some space between rock and mind."
  • Hiroko Ai: "This is home. This is where we start again."
  • Sax Russell: "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to be a rocket scientist."

[edit] Screen adaptation

The Mars trilogy rights were at one point held by James Cameron [1], who planned a five-hour miniseries to be directed by Martha Coolidge[2], but he passed on the option. Later Gale Ann Hurd planned a similar mini-series for the Sci-Fi Channel, which has also remained unproduced.[3]

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

Preceded by
Doomsday Book
by Connie Willis		 (for Red Mars)
Nebula Award for Best Novel
1993		 Succeeded by
Moving Mars
by Greg Bear
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../m/a/r/Mars_trilogy.html"
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