4

CHAPTER

SPACE FICTION : A CRITIQUE OF MARXISM

Doris Lessing became an avid reader of Kurt Vonnegut, the exponent of Science Fiction in the late sixties, which

Katherine

coincident with Lessing's first

Fishburn

sees

as

attempt to write

in that genre. At a meeting at UCLA on April 10th 1984 she was asked if the Memoirs of a Survivor was the first volume of Canopus in Argos her Space Fiction series. that

In reply to this Lessing declared

"Briefina

(1971)

March(1988), 48). Hell -

is

influence Experience

of

R.D.

(1970)

first"

(Fishburn,

The Briefing for a Descent into

novel

a

came

that

clearly

Laing's where 160

the

insanity

expresses

the

Politics

of

is

as

seen

enlightenment and gives a new perspective to old beliefs.

It is this element of freedom that drew

her to Science Fiction.

In the preface to Shikasta

she refers to Science Fiction as "the most original branch of literature" which is inventive and witty and

"gives one

the

freedom

to

express

without any encumbrance. ("Some Remarks") Lessing

and

her

critics

see

the

oneself Though

beginning

of

Science Fiction from Briefing, this study considers only the Canopean novels for analysis. Lessing has paid homage to R.D.Laing and his theory of psychotherapy through a sympathetic and supportive

environment

in

her

novels

of

the

seventies and turned her interest and attention to Sufism in the eighties to which she has dedicated another series of novels under the name Canopus in Argos: Archives. Shikasta (1979) Marriages Between Zones Three Four and Five (1980) Sirian Experiments (1981) Making of the Representatives for Planet 8 (1982) and the Sentimental Agents in the Empire

(1983) include the

novels contain

strong

canopean

Volyen

series.

influence of

The

Sufism, a

faith Lessing came to embrace for some time through

her

discipleship

to

Idries

Shah,

the

modern

interpreter of Sufism to the Western World.

Her

novels of that period reflect the elements of "Sufi teaching

story"

techniques,

its

"stimulies

and

imagination" (Nancy Shields Hardin, 318) and the importance of "recognising and maintaining moments of wakeful insights" (319). But the world it deals with is the same world and,

the

problems this

world faces is the same problems, which Lessing has dealt with, in her earlier novels.

Her characters

always share the same interest, hold the same faith and behave in the same manner.

Lessing, Martha

Quest, Anna Wulf and Ambien I1 are identical in their beliefs

and

attitudes.

About Ambien

I1

Lessing said, "some of her preoccupations are of course

mine"

because

as

(Sirian, 11). Lessing

has

said

interviews, that a writer's

This

is

possible

in

one

of

the

source is always the

same. A writer can write one novel, and the rest of what he writes is

the repetition of

the same,

because he depends upon the same source and writes from within.

Events

and

characters

spring

from

"consciousness" and "subconscious" (Personal Voice, 52) mind having the same traits and interest. As

the source is same so is the concerns she has come to consider dear to her heart.

Society and social

problems are always in the forefront for Lessing, and they are reflected in her writings because her writings "emerge" from her life (53). In the sixties Lessing was confused about the individual' s society.

role

and

individual' s

place

in

But that confusion, was overcome by the

time she came to write the Inner Space novels.

She

had created characters who had sacrificed personal interest in order to safeguard the interest of the society.

Kate Brown and the Survivor have shown

the importance of commitment in building the ideal world of earlier visions though they are not able to give the ideal world a 'habitation and a name'. Watkins too by the experience of the integration of self and

events

wholeness

through

in

the

crystal points

the death

of

which is the primal sin of man.

towards

'individualism', Marx calls this

primal sin, the ownership of the private property of the capitalist society. It is only through the abolishing

of the private property the society

will be healed of the evils of capitalism.

Lessing's next move into the outer space, in search

of

the

Galatic

worlds

too, deals

with

familiar themes and situations, through the broader vision justifiable both in the Marxian sense and in the Sufian sense, because in one sense both these "-ismsn aim at the welfare of humanity. aims

at

man's

wholeness

through

a

Sufism spiritual

renewal, where as Marxism seeks to achieve this wholeness through abolition of "private propertyN and "states", the two edged weapons that had been inflicting torture upon humanity.

Marx believed

that man will be free from all binding chains once the private ownership of the means of production is removed and power is given in the hands of the workers.

This is why Marx could boldly write that

the peoples of the world have "nothing to lose but their chains" (Manifesto, 31). Speaking about the Marxist view on the development of man Erich F r o m says, "The aim of the development of man, for Marx, is a new harmony between man and man, and between man

and

nature,

a

development

in

which

man's

relatedness to his fellow man will correspond to his most important human need". him,

is

"an

association

in

Socialism, for which

the

free

development of each is the condition for the free development of all," a society in which "the full and free development of each individual becomes the ruling principle" (Erich F r o m (1955), 223). This condition is achieved through Socialization of the means of production, which will eliminate "selfalienation",

and

turn

man

into

an

active

and

responsible participant in the social and economic process, and "in overcoming the split between the individual and the social nature of man" (224). Lessing' s

Canopus

novels

abound

in

extraterrestrial messengers and messages aimed at bringing peace and world unity. back

Like Marx who goes

to the beginning of the history of man to

express

the

long

night

of

oppression,

Lessing

retells the story of man from the beginning of creation, particularly emphasising the period when primitive men lived in harmony with one another and nature.

Even here it is highly interesting to note

that Karl Marx, in his analysis of society gives importance

to

this

one

period

of

"primitive

communism" where man lived free of the shadow of oppression. Like Marx again Lessing finds that the

destruction of this period was caused by private interest which she calls, "Shammat".

Shikasta the

first novel

in

the

"Canopus"

series deals with the return of Johor, the Canopean agent to re-establish the "Lock" but he encounters people subjected to oppression and misery.

Their

struggle and confusions move him, and he stays on to instruct and educate glorious past, but

the people

about

their

the result is achieved only

after the destruction of the world. Though

Sufian

influence

is

clearly

spelt ,

Lessing is not entirely suggesting the path

of

spirituality for the attainment of wholeness.

In

these

novels

too

she

is

concerned

experience of oppression and nations' against it.

with

the revolt of

the the

Instead of bending their head

and accepting the heavy yoke of domination they call

in question the oppressors, and hold

them

responsible not for oppression of mankind alone, but for the destruction of the entire world. Once again

Lessing

presents

"cataclysm"

. .

"precondition for coherence" (C J

as

the

Bullock, Kay. L

.

Stewart. (1979), 257) of humanity in Shikasta. Thus 166

she

opens

the

possibility

for

a

Marxian

interpretation.

If Lessing uses the story telling method of Sufism

(Nancy

Shields

Hardin

(1977),

317)in

narration she follows the Science Fiction genre in the treatment of theme in Canopus novels. Science Fiction

is

a

"high

information"

genre

(Ed.

Tomshippey (1991), 16). By its very nature then the novel

is intended to teach and

it expects

the

readers to take it seriously because that is the very

purpose

of

Science

Fiction.

Through her

extraterrestrial characters then whatever Lessing says is to be believed and they are intended to change

us

intellectually

( Fishburn,

March

(1988),51) and emotionally.

Canopus novels offer possibilities for very many interpretations. a

strong Sufi

Science

influence and

Fiction

themselves

As seen earlier they express

easily

but for

above

can be all

a Marxian

studied as

they

render

interpretation,

because they show an equally strong influence of Marxism, Lessing' s

one time favourite philosophy.

More

than

in

any

other

novels

Lessing

is

highly critical about the flaws of Marxism here. "Rhetoric", she says, has become a severe illness of

Marxism

inflicted

and

by

it

patients.

She

corruption

of

"Shammat".

suggests should also

that be

finds

Marxism

in

those

treated an

who as

excuse

the

are

mental for

the

influence

of

Lessing looks at Shamnat as an inherent

flaw in man which distorts even the best influence upon

humanity.

It

degenerates

every

thing

in

nature, and corrupts people and makes them selfish and unsympathetic. Apart from dealing with the evil of Rhetoric and the nature of Shammat, the Canopean novels

concentrate

on

the

arrangement

of

the

society on the basis of oppression; and with the Marxian

watchword

focuses

as

the

of

"Necessity"

guiding

principle

which

Lessing

of

Canopus.

Finally she deals with the "cataclysmic end of the universe" . Like England,

her the

previous Shikastan

societies Society,

Africa

which

and

Lessing

discloses through her "Canopus" series is suffering from the curse of oppression. But unlike in other

novels

where the society she depicts is a modern

capitalist

society

capitalism,

where

suffering individuals

directly are

under

crippled

the

Shikastan society goes back to the primitive times. she reveals three phases to the Shikastan society. The first phase dealing with the years of 'Lock' (Shikasta, 34), which may be called the period of "Rohanda" when earth was called by that name.

As

the very name suggests it was the Golden age of her existence. "It (earth) was

fruitful and thriving"

(27) because of the presence of the "Lock"; man and

nature lived in harmony, caring for one another. In Lessing's period

when

Science Fiction language, it is a the

"substance of

we

Feeling" was

strong and Marx calls it the period of "primitive Communism", when man lived in perfect accord with one another and nature. labour

which

oppression.

Marx

sees

There was no division of as

the

beginning

of

The only division society faced was

between sexes. Frederick Engels in his "Origin of the Family" says about it: Division

of

labour

was

a

pure

and

simple

outgrowth of nature; it existed only between

the two sexes.

The men went to war, hunted,

fished, provided the raw material for food and the tools necessary

for

these pursuits.

The

women cared for the house, and prepared food and clothing ;

they cooked, weaved and sewed.

Each was master

in his or her own field of

activity: the man in the forest the woman in the house. made

and

Each owned the tools he or she

.

used:.

communistic,

The

comprising

household

several

and

was many

families. Whatever was produced used in common was common property"

(Selected Works, Vo1.3,

317) . This period came to a close with the development of "private property which according to Lessing is the introduction of "Shammat, in Rohanda.

This society-

leads

the

second

the reign of Shammat.

Individualism. Rohandans

to

Before

thrived

aspirations"

in

or 'Square

"Oval

or

City"

in

of

The period

the of

Shammat

overpowered,

the

"peace,

mutual

and

(Shikasta, 36).

"Round City"

phase

They

help

lived

in

the

City" , "Hexagonal Ci tym , the

crescent

City,

but

Irrespective of the cities they occupied, they were happy and content and feared none. They did not consider

anyone

as

their

enemy

until

Shammat began to influence them. Lessing

uses

to

describe

the

day

The terms that

Shammat

and

Shammat

influence is highly suggestive. They are called "Pirate State" (36). In Marxfs terminology they are the exploiters of humanity, he bourgeoisie"

the

grand

calls them

middle

class

"the whose

individualistic endeavour is aimed at robbing the proletariat and other weaker sections of society, reducing them to poverty and misery.

No wonder

then, Lessing uses such strong words to name them Shammat

-

and their influence is termed as the

"Degenerative

disease",

which

is

diametrically

opposed to the Canopean influence of "Harmonyfrand prosperity . The parallelism of degenerative disease with private

property

becomes

clear

meaning for it is analysed.

when

Lessing's

She equates Shammat

with individualism which favours 'capitalism' and Capitalism in turn is built upon the edifice of private property.

Lessing looks at a capitalist

society

as

a

sick

society,

suffering

from

fragmentation. Hence the first sign of degenerative disease is said to be the identification of oneself as "individual", Lessing explains it through the canopean agent Johor: [T]o identify with ourselves as individuals

-

that is the very essence of the Degenerative Disease, and every one of us in the Canopean Empire is taught to value ourselves only in so far as we are in Harmony with the plan( 55). And the plan in Canopean terms is the welfare of all human beings and entire nature. Johor lists eight different types

of

individualistic groups

inhabiting Rohanda including the "Lynda Coleridge" type,

the

Schizophrenic

industrialist

society,

symptoms of alienation.

victims

of

suffering

the

modern

from

acute

With these different types

of individuals trying for supremacy Rohanda has become a lunatic asylum. Individualism is something which canopus and canopean subjects should never associate themselves with. Johor's explanation of what is expected of

Canopeans, read very much like Anton's study class where the expectations from a Marxist is expressed, A

communist knows

that

in

himself

he

is

nothing but in so far as he represents the suppressed working

people he

is everything

(Ripple, 37) . Johor says "everyone of us in the canopean Empire is taught to value ourselves only in so far as we are in harmony with the plan" Canopean plan according to the is

the

"necessity"

of

(Shikasta,55). The Canopean philosophy

maintaining

a

peaceful

balance between everything and everyone. But this balance

is

destroyed

with

the

introduction

of

Shammat, in other words, through the introduction of the cult of "individualism". Rohanda becomes Shikasta, the afflicted one. Change has come over even in condition

of

exploitation.

the

planet

Shikasta

is

the physical

because now

the

of centre

over of

contradiction, and as Johor the canopean emissary reports and

"this planet is above all one of contrasts

contradiction,

because

of

its

in-built

stresses.

Tension is its essential nature. This is its weakness" (15).

is its strength. saying Lessing

Thus

confirms the fact that this planet

is our earth, with progress.

This

its law of contradiction and

This affirms us that she is dealing with

the history of our planet in a fable like manner. The

civil

wars

and

the world

wars,

calamities and eruption of plagues

the

natural

and diseases,

the rise and fall of empires, all are dealt with such precision, that they enable us to relive and understand explained religious fact of

the by

nature

our

philosophies,

scriptures. the

of

fall

They

of man

civilisation

history all point

from Grace

as

books to

and

the one

- which

is

explained by Marx as the deviation from total cooperation

to

selfish

accumulation.

Lessing

also

follows the same line of thought when she sees

the

inhabitants of the planet as selfish, unconcerned and

destructive

of

themselves

and

their

environment from the time of the introduction of Shammat. "ShikastaN she says has become "the hurt, the damaged, the wounded oneV(38) and "Shamnat was growing

from

strength

to

strength .

Shammat

was

taking advantage of the new weakness of Rohanda", 174

and Rohanda has become "unshielded, unguardedV(38), because

she

has

become

Through

the

analogy

the

of

slave

Shikasta

of

Shanunat.

and

Shannnat,

Lessing unfolds

the story of oppression,

through

the development

of

private

ownership

of

private

the means

property

of production,

come to claw at the weaker This

weaker

section

"proletariat

of

of

the

and

which

has

section of humanity.

the

society

world",

by

is

called

Marx.

The

Proletariat for Marx are the most despised lot of humanity and who are to be liberated.

Lessing

finds

oppression

society. According every

war

resulted example the

that in

to

her,

was

more

the French Revolution

King,

priest

establishment brotherhood

of

and

establishment

and

the

of

the

to

but

in

reveals

end

was

despotism

that

For

fought against and

values it

the

oppression

oppression.

state

noble

justice,

inbuilt

history

fought

propagating

as

of

ended of

for

the

freedom, with

the

Napoleon.

Lessing' s Canopean emissary Johor , with his deeper understanding

of

human

nature

events reports the same thing:

and

historical

[Alfter each

war,

a

renewed

descent

into

barbarism was sharply visible - but apparently cause and effect were not connected, in the minds of Shikastans"

. . .

"bribery, looting,

theft, from the top of the pyramids of power to the bottom, were the norm.

People were

taught to live for their own advancement and the

acquisition

food,

drink,

of

every

goods. possible

Consumption

of

commodity

was

built into the economic structure of every society.

.

.

And

yet

these

repulsive

symptoms of decay were not seen as direct consequences of

the wars

that

rules

their

lives (117).

By making the Shikastans insensitive to these

situations, Lessing throws light upon the nature of our own society. H.G. Wells' story "Country of the Blind" explains the nature of any society well.

In

a country where all are blind the normal man is treated for eye sight, and the remedy will be to remove the eye balls. oppression

is

the

So too in a society where

norm,

every measure

will

be

adopted

to

perpetuate

it

as

perfectly

and

forcefully as possible. The inability of man to understand the cause and effect, is seen, by the all powerful Canopean emissary

Johor, as

the

result

of

the

Shammat

influence. The aim of this stricken people is "to live for their own advancement and the acquisition of goods.

But the pitiable condition is their

insensitivity to identify these "repulsive symptoms of decay" as the "direct consequences of the wars that ruled their lives" (117). War is also seen by Lessing as resulting from the influence of Shammat. She bemoans the helpless, blindness of man caught up

in

the

web

of

personal

this

interest.

oppressive

symptom

The

universality

of

is

expressed by

the reports Johor gives about the

different places he visits. According to him people everywhere have forgotten their beautiful past , nor do they have any desire to return to those glorious days ;

because

differences and

they

are made

oppression are

to believe intended by

that the

gods. Here again direct Marxian terminology is used

to express the nature of people, both the oppressed and oppressors. Lessing attacks every institution, because she sees it as the consequence of private interest. Like Marx, Lessing too considers institutions as the oppressive instrument of the bourgeoisie, with whom Marx and Marxism wages continuous war. Again like Marx she considers money as the basic factor, in Shikastan society that controls relationships. She

says

possible

"Consumption commodity was

of

food,

built

into

drink,

every

the economic

structure of every society" (117) and despite the fact

that

"the

main

ideology"

of

"justice,

equality, democracy'' have spread all over the world (Shikasta) "torture, exploitation, oppression and suppression" prevailed every where.

Instability

and uncertainty was the order of the day. There were extreme differences between the rich and the poor, family life has broken down and people had become slaves of alcohol and other "derivatives of opium, cocoa (247).

and

tobacco, chemicals,

caffeine"

In her earlier novels Lessing never expressed openly had

she

what has gone wrong with our society.

only

through

depicted

characters

organised

who

oppressive

are

suffering

measures.

Her

characters, Martha Quest, Thomas Stern, Anna Wulf, Kate Brown, Watkins, the Survivor and Emily are all We are not told

victims of an oppressive set up.

about the cause of oppression, though. It was left to

the

reader's

imagination

to

discover

the

sickness of society, in the light of the various interpretations.

But here in her Canopus novels

she is very open and with clinical precision

tells

us that it is the loss of the SOWF-"Substance Of We Feeling" that has set the world in commotion. She suggests that only by re-establishing SOWF we will be

cured. Marx

also made

the

suggested the same remedy. does

not

advocate

a

same

analysis

and

Like Marx, Lessing too

peaceful

means.

It

is

a

revolution that she suggests when she speaks of the cataclysmic blast.

end

of

the

world

through

a

nuclear

According to her after the catastrophe the

remaining humanity will organise communal life on the principles of equality and justice. It is not very

strange

that

the

one 179

time

Marxist

openly

confesses

her

diagnosis

in

terms

of

understanding of the history of man. tries to build

Marxian

What Marx

through scientific socialism and

Lessing through the re-establishment of SOWF are one and the same - a society built upon collective co-operation. The trial scene towards the end of Shikasta again throws light upon the point of oppression. The Whites Blacks.

are

tried

by

the Coloured

and

the

In Lessing's analysis the White stand for

the oppressors and the others for the oppressed. The whole world black

represented by the coloured and

rises against oppression, which

again

is

highly significant because Marx had envisioned his philosophy for the whole world not for one country or nation.

Only when the revolt against oppression

becomes a global movement, he believed, it can produce the desired effect. The trial had a double effect. It not only accused the oppressors

but

also opened the eyes of the oppressed nations upon the inhumanity practised by man to man down through centuries. This understanding once again shows the influence of Marxism.

Marx had reduced the entire

history of man into a series of "class struggle" between

the

oppressed

(Manifesto.40). propagated

In

with

and

India

this

religious

thousands of years.

the

oppressors

inhumanity

significance

was for

In Africa slave trade was

introduced by the help of the blacks themselves (Shikasta,415).

In short everyone present in the

trial was convinced that inhumanity is something imbedded in human nature.

Lessing had dealt with

this understanding of human nature in her earlier novel

The Memoirs of a Survivor, through Emily's

childhood narrative. The choice of the place for trial is very carefully

done.

civilisation,

Greece, a '

the

cradle

of

slave state", which

western "despised

women, admired homosexuality" (380) and yet enjoyed the position

of

"democratic state" and

"highly

revered by the western tradition" (380) is the site chosen for the trial.

The very choice of the place

makes the trial a verdict of History. The trial is based not upon the present condition but it is a judgement passed upon the entire history of man. This indictment is in keeping with Lessing's idea

of oppression as expressed in The Memoirs of a Survivor.

In Memoirs, while depicting, the misery

of Emily in her childhood Lessing focuses upon the presence

of

oppression

cradles.

In

Shikasta,

reveals

oppression

as

from

an

she

most

our

basic

individual's intelligently temperament,

running through the veins of our civilisation and corrupting everything in course of time.

Lessing's

understanding of oppression as a tendency that is in-built in the nature of man, stands in opposition to Marx's concept of it.

For Marx oppression is

removable through the establishment of communism. But Lessing is critical of it. is

acceptable,

but

even

For her, communism

communism

will

be

corrupted, because of the inherent flaw in man. Marx's

"dialectical materialism" does not say what

will happen to society after the establishment of "socialism" and "communism". to a close?

No.

It will

Will dialectics come form new thesis and

antithesis, and the principle of contradiction will go on forming new synthesis. will

be

explanation

corrupted of

and

Shammat

Thus even Communism replaced.

influence

is

dialectics than Marx' s in this respect.

Lessing's

a

better

The Canopean programme of administration of the

fellow

"Necessity"

planets again

through

subjects

Marxian consideration.

the

the

principle

"series"

for

of a

The word necessity is a

very important word in Marxian thought. The French novelist Sartre calls it "the necessary philosophy of our

times". Marx

says of revolution as

the

"inevitable necessity" of the bourgeois culture and Marx's

communist

utopia

is

based

upon

the

"philosophy of necessity" each one enjoying from society what

is necessary

for

Hence the over emphasising of

one's

existence.

the word

Canopean novels is highly significant. benevolent

kingdom

principles

of

Canopus

is

"necessity", a

built term

in

the

Lessing's upon

which

the other

planets like Sirius do not understand in its full significance.

This

builds

up

tension

Canopus and other planets. The Sirian agent

between Mien

I1 rebels against Klorathy, the canopean envoy, concerning the point of "necessity", but once she understands it, she becomes an advocate of

the

principle of "necessity" to the point of extinction from her society.

It is this sense of necessity

that compelled Al-Ith

and Ben Ata in Marriages

between

Zones

Three

Four

and

Five

for

such

sacrifice for the sake of their people. Zone Three, Al-Ith' s

kingdom

beautiful.

was

prosperous,

benign

and

Her subjects were loving and sensitive

to one another, to the animals and nature.

But as

it always happens, plenty caused lethargy in people and animals. "The Animalsu as reported to Al-Ith, "are

disturbed

in

the

minds

sorrowful" (17). Even the old man

and

they

are

who had spent his

entire life with animals cannot identify the cause. When asked by Al-Ith about

the new symptoms he

reports : I have been among the herds since it was noticed.

Day after day I have been with them.

Not one says anything different.

They do not

know why, but they are sad enough to die. They have lost the zest for living (17).

This lethargy is result of the violation of the principle of necessity. As the representative of the people the Queen is called by the providers to expiate for them. She was reluctant to accept the command. But once in Zone Four, she understands the meaning

of

the

command

and

the

guilt

of

her

Kingdom.

She

understood

that

though

they

were

prosperous, they lacked the sense of the sufferings of

other

people

people

of

the

inhabiting

Zone

their

Four, wholly

planet.

The

warriors,

who

cannot boast of a prosperous life like that of the natives

of

Zone

Three,

were

living

in

abject

poverty, little realising their plight. Theirs was a hierarchical society, where exploitation was the order of the day. Hence Al-Ith's

sojourn in Zone

Three is intended to be a two fold education for the sojourners of Zones Three and Four.

Zone Four, Ben Ata' s kingdom, suffered due to continuous

war

and

war

preparations.

The

description of these two Zones is done in the fable like manner

of the Sufi teaching.

But a close

reading of the novel and the description of the life style in these Zones reveal

that they are the

representatives of the worlds of the haves and the have-nots.

Their coming together is intended to

bring equality between

the two countries.

The

highly prosperous Queen should learn the pain of not having sufficient material goods and freedom and through her a whole realm should be educated.

Al-Ith found life difficult and intolerable in Zone Four;

and longed to be back in her own realm

"where an easy friendly light heartedness was every one expected to feel" ( 4 9 ) ,

but she could not get

away without accomplishing the task entrusted to her.

So despite the difficulties she continued to

remain in Zone Four, adjusting to the suffocation of a warrior culture.

This feeling of suffocation was experienced not only by her;

Ben Ata the sole master of the

Kingdom, the free and the uncaring King of Zone Four, too felt the demand of the providers to marry Al-Ith, unreasonable and ridiculous. only

the morality

of

the

soldier

He who had was

suddenly

called to be considerate to others, especially to Al-Ith

, whom he began to abhor, because of her

finer feelings for people and animals.

He wanted

to "throw off" her culture and "push away, her, whose very presence seemed to set up an irritable resistance in himn ( 4 9 )

He often grumbled at the

"providers" who had ordered the two zones to meet, for not making it clear what exactly they were expected to do "why don't

they tell us what is

wrong, quite simply and be done with it", and then we could put it rightw(42). As Al-Ith was unaware of the outside world and its misery, Ben Ata too did not know the extent of people.

the misery

of his

He was blind and insensitive to their

lives which according to Lessing is the nature of the leaders in an oppressive set up.

Al-Ith on the

other hand was sensitive, and considerate and knew what her people needed, except the cause of their sadness.

They

satiation. experience

had

everything

She did want

and

to

the

point

not know that they pain.

She

of

should

achieves

this

knowledge only when she descends to the Zone of Ben Ata.

Thus their coming together was an "inevitable

Necessity" for the welfare of both the Zones which is achieved through the birth of their son who combines in

him

the

traits

of

his

father

and

mother, prosperity and poverty.

Once the purpose of their union is over the Providers demanded the separation of Al-Ith and Ben Ata.

This

Providers

once are

"Necessity".

again

makes

concerned It

is

with

here

it

clear

the

that

principle

Lessing

shows

the of in

'Marriages',

the

insignificance

of

individuals.

Once their role is over and what was 'necessary' is achieved, individuals are disposed off.

It was

difficult for both Al-Ith and Ben Ata to become non individuals.

But for Lessing from the days of her

open romance with communism, Individuals are only Important as long as they serve the public good. This

conviction

beautifully.

is

illustrated

in

"Marriages"

When Dabeeb, Al-Ith' s maid servant

brings in the message from the providers that both Al-Ith and Ben Ata should separate and

that Al-Ith

should return to her home land without her son, and Ben Ata

should marry the Queen of Zone Five, they

found it difficult to accept the verdict, for they have

grown

understand

close that

to

each

personal

other;

but

relationships

have

significance in the command of the Providers. stoicism expressed by

both

brings

to

they no The

our mind

Martha's early education of communist way of life, as instilled into her by Anton her husband. "A communist should consider himself as a dead man on leave"

(Ripple,37) and again a communist has no

personal life, except the life of the party and the welfare of the society in his mind.

A

communist

must be prepared to give up everything "his family, his wife, his children, at a word from the party". Thus as a

true communist Al-Ith rides away, a

picture of despair, but a communist. become happy and rejuvenated. that his

Zone needed

Her realm had

Ben Ata had learned

improvement.

He

stopped

wars, and began to rebuild his cities and improve the life style of the people.

But Al-Ith found no

place. In her Zone people have forgotten her. AlIth leads a life in isolation looking at Zone Four where her son and husband are. Her state at the end of the novel once again emphasises the unimportance of individuals in the Marxian sense. Ben Ata, now married to Vahshi, the bandit Queen of Zone Five, the most barbarous country living by

robbery and

looting. The

considerate

feelings, thoughts of social justice, and the finer qualities he had learned from Al-Ith come to his aid and he transforms the black Queen into a gentle lady, a civilised maid.

The novel ends with these

words : There was continuous movement now, from Zone Five to Zone Four. And from Zone Four to Zone 189

Three - and from us, up the pass.

There was a

lightness, a freshness and an enquiry and a remaking and an inspiration where there had been

only

(244)

stagnation

and

closed

frontiers

.

These unwillingly

two

leaders

of

the

nations

who

come together, learn and understand

through their lives together that they can become redeemers only through co-operation and tolerance and forgetfulness of self. The dedication of Ben Ata and Al-Ith remind us Anton's

words explaining

' the meaning of a "communist" as a

person who is

utterly, totally, dedicated to the cause of freeing humanity"

(Ripple,37).

Marxist writer Culture

Christopher

in his book

Studies

Caudwell

a

In a Dying

(1990) too, emphasises this nature of a

communist .

He says

"Communists are people who

believe in freedom and dedication" (136). And

he

adds : All lovers of liberty turn to communism. This is because communism is, the attainment of more liberty than bourgeois society can reach. Communism has its basis as the understanding 190

of the causality of society, so that all the unfreedom involved in bourgeois society, the enslavement of the have-nots by the haves, and the slavery of both haves and have-nots to wars, slumps, depression and superstition, may be ended. To be conscious of the laws of dead matter;

that

is

enough.

Communism

something; but seizes hold

it

of

is

a

not

higher

degree of self-determination, to rescue man from war, starvation, hate, and coercion, by becoming conscious of the causality of society

(146). For a communist,

'the other'

is important.

They are concerned not with the freedom of oneself but the freedom of all.

A communist is called to

sacrifice his life and interest to safe-guard the interest of the society.

Thus there is nothing

strange in Lessing inviting Al-Ith and Ben Ata for a life of commitment for the well being of their people and bear fruits through the establishment of a

global

different

concord planets.

through Marxism

the

intermingling

aimed

at

of

removing

barriers between nations and establishing a global

order where inequality and oppression will exist no more.

But as required of a communist who is called

"to give up everything"

(Ripple,37) Al-Ith' s and

Ben Ata' s personal life ends in tragedy, especially the life of Al-Ith.

When Ben Ata marries Vahshi,

Al-Ith accepts it and leaves Zone Four which she had come to love more than her own land, despite the poverty and brutality of the Zone (Marriages, 64). It again highlights the insignificance of the

individual in comparison with the society. In The Making of the Representative for Planet

-8

(1982) the same unconcern for the individual is

seen, when the plan of Canopus fails and the people are let to die, and the representatives are asked to evacuate the place. To Doeg's what would

enquiry, about

happen to them, Johor, through his

silence makes them understand the unimportance of individuals.

They come to see that what matters is

the world, and what they do, not who they are. Hence Alsi

(the protector of animals) can become

Doeg (the speaker and keeper of records). Equally interchangeable is the works of Klin maker the Guardian of the Orchards).

(the fruit Bratch (the

sustainer of creatures of flesh an Sinew, blood and bone) Pedug (the reproducer of life) and Marl keeper of the Herds) (Planet 8,146,147).

(the

As long

as these functions exist in a society different individuals will assume these names and the work will be carried out under the titles.

What is

important is the work not the person who performs it.

Though the insignificance of the individual

was stressed first by Marxists, the idea also has connection with current thinking that has

taken

root in the present society. Today Persons are only a numerical number.

Society will function, despite

individuals. This loss of individuality will reduce them into "a shoal of fishes or a flock of birds" (159) whose death means nothing to Canopus, because Canopus

functions only

present

necessity

is

on

that

should now be exterminated. by

snow.

What

is

"necessity" these

and

failed

the

species

They are swallowed up

interesting

is

the

sheer

unconcern Lessing expresses in submitting thousands of people to death in the snow, in the presence of Canopean agent Johor who sees their death with a cold detachment.

Only a person who has conviction

about the "inevitable necessity" of things in the

world can sit unmoved as Johor did or as Lessing has

done

in

her

novels,

sending

thousands

to

"Necessity" discussed

by

extermination, with detached emotions. Another

aspect of

Lessing in the Canopus novels is the importance of keeping the balance of nature intact in order to live

harmoniously

benevolent planet",

planet

with

in

the

world.

is

described

"Necessity", as

administration.

Canopus

as

the

the

norm

the "lord

of

its

However it seems to be a hard law

for an inferior planet like Sirius which is built upon

exploitation

height Lessing

of

reports

their

in

Lelannian

of

nature

exploitation

the mutation Experiments"

of

the

and

third

of

species.

is

expressed

species.

(Sirian,247) type

of

In

The by "The

Ambien

I1

experiments

for

creating a new specie by transplanting limbs and organs ( 2 5 8 ) .

The

creatures

thus

"monsters" repulsive and frightening

created

.

were

All these

limp transformation was intended for entertainment for the ruling classes.

She reports of a child who

had this limb transformation:

[I]t had legs grafted on to its hips!

And we

were told that this unfortunate at least would have an adequate future, for it would be used as entertainment for

the ruling classes;

it

was able to revolve itself on these four legs as on the spokes of a wheel (258,259).

Every mutation was a form of exploitation by the propertied class.

Thus saying Lessing confirms

her faith that the poor are exploited by the rich to the point of dehumanising them.

Lessing also

speaks of the "psychological maladjustments" and the trauma experienced by new

invention,

which

is

alienation experienced by society

of

the

new

these creatures of

akin

to

the

the oppressed

species

(258)

who

total

class

suffer

in

from

psychological maladjustments. She says:

The mammary glands of some females had been grafted on their backs.

Others had them on

their thighs. The sexual organs of males were transferred to their faces, so that the organs for eating and progenitor were adjacent. This caused (258).

severe

psychological

maladjustments

Yet it provided the researcher's great interest and entertainment.

Again she speaks of the experiments

conducted to test the endurance of beings:

In

order

to

find

out

the

capacities

for

endurance and perseverance of their subject animals, they had built a very large tank, with slippery sloping sides filled

with

water.

. . .

About

a

this was hundred

particularly healthy and strong tribes men had been selected and put into this tank to swim there until they drowned. of

the

watches

tank

researchers

All around the edge stood

with

stop

in their hands. Others guarded

the

instruments with which they were measuring the pulse rate and breathing of the experiments: from time to time an animal would be selected, pulled out of the water, and tested, and then, in spite of

cries and pleadings, would

be

flung back in again (257). The helplessness expressed

in

the

eyes

of

the

animals, indicate the extent of sufferings endured by them.

The activities of Sirians and the Lelannians are resented by Canopus, because it destroys nature and encourages selfish exploitation of humanity. Canopus never loses an opportunity to instruct the rival

planet

exploitation.

Sirius

of

the

dangers

of

such

Klorathy shows Ambien I1 what would

happen if such exploitation is stopped: It will be useful for us - for every one - for the whole Galaxy, if the tribes are enabled to return as far as possible to their old state. They

will

be

returned

to

their

own

territories, and encouraged to resume their former

simple

environment. not

lives

in

balance

with

the

Not taking more than they need,

despoiling,

not

over

running

their

geographical areas, or laying waste (270).

"To each according

to his

needs and

from each

according to his abilityr1. This is the principle behind the advise of Klorathy. but

co-operation,

equilibrium

that

alone is

upset

Not exploitation,

will by

restore the

production of the capitalist society.

the

unplanned

In Shikasta through the Canopean agent Johor Lessing reported about the influence of Shammat on Shikasta, but

through Klorathy another agent of

Canopus she explains in The Sirian Experiments its inner nature and the extent of its power, over the entire universe.

Ambien I1 is made to understand

that the pattern of life projected in different parts of the planet, is only a reflection of the fast advancement of capitalism.

Shammat usurped

power from Rohandans and set up the enemy planet Puttiora which exists only to enjoy the benefits of Rohanda and other Canopean planets and persons like the weak agents of Canopus, Nasar and Incent. What Marx

said in his Capital

about

the advancement

monopoly is word by word translated by Lessing in her Canopean novels.

Marx says in his Capital that

the diminishing number of the magnates of capital, causes advancing misery in society. "Along with the constantly diminishing number of the magnates of capital, who usurped and monopolised all advantages of this process of transformation, grows the mass of

misery, oppression,

exploitation"

slavery, degradation

(Capital, Vol.3, 317ff) .

and

This is

what happens with the influence of Shammat over the

nations. The Puttorians usurp the power of the people,

by

cutting

away

the

"Substance

of

We

FeelingN which connects them with Canopus and by depriving the agents, of the ornaments of power and protection.

Nasar,

the Canopean

agent

who

is

robbed of his ornaments becomes a slave to the Shammat Queen Elyle.

He has lost his divinity and

humanity and is reduced to the state of an animal. Ambien I1 who sees him in this state comments about behaviour

.

.

.and he shut his eyes, and flung

-

back his head with something like a howl was

like

the

(Sirian,l71).

howl

of

a

desperate

yes, it animal"

This is the general behaviour of the

people who have been enslaved by Shammat. According slavery,

to Klorathy

degradation

and

there

is oppression,

exploitation,

because

people have forgotten the norm of "necessity", result of Shammat influence.

as a

When everything in

the world is once again brought with in the limit of

necessity,

once

again,

Rohanda

with

its

fruitfulness and prosperity will be established; Shikasta, with the affliction and misery will be no more

-

This hope of Klorathy is like the promise of

Marxism

to

build

a

Utopia,

a

society

without

a

burning

problem

oppression and misery.

Ecological today.

imbalance

is

Lessing is acutely aware of it, and has

openly stood against nuclear power, and destruction of nature.

In The Four Gated City, in The Briefing

for a Descent into Hell

and in the Canopus novels,

she expresses her concern Capra, while

a

physicist,

talking

about

in the

Fritjof

for nature. his

Turning

various

Point(1983)

principles

that

interpreted the burning issues of present society, holds Marx and Marxism in high honour. He says that "although

Marx

did

ecological concerns, his used

to predict

not

strongly

emphasise

approach could have been

the ecological

exploitation

that

capitalism produced and socialism predictedt' (217). He finds fault with the followers of Marx for not focusing upon provided,

yet

this problem another

"i t,

earlier, because

devastating

critique

of

capitalism and confirmed the vigour of the Marxian Method" (217) Lessingrs concern for ecology thus is basically rooted in the Marxian she can boldly

ideology.

Hence

say through the Canopean agent,

Klorathy that Shammat -

who corrupts everything is

diametrically opposed to "Necessity" which aims at wholeness and preservation.

Ambien

the

11,

Sirian

agent

after

long

association with Klorathy and other Canopean agents learns the lesson of the inter relatedness of every thing in the world.

Marxism was envisaged by Marx

as a world movement.

The watchword of the movement

itself reveals this fact, "workers of the world unite", but later on the emphasis was shifted to make it convenient for the idea of "socialism in one country", but this had adulterated the idea of world unity.

Joseph Stalin was completely opposed

to this idea. As late as April 1924 he said: W e r throwing the power of the bourgeoisie and establishing

the power of the proletariat in

one country does not yet ensure the victory of socialism. socialism

-

the

complete

The principal task of

organisation

of

socialist

production - has still to be fulfilled. Can this task be fulfilled, can the final victory of

socialism

be

achieved

in

one

country

without the joint efforts of the proletarian 20 1

in several advanced countries?

No. it cannot

(J.Stalin, 153) . This early belief of Stalin explains the scepticism expressed Sirius.

by

Canopus

over

the

I1

prides

Though Ambien

civilisation in

their

of

work

saying about their excellent "colonial service, and the concern they (we) show for the good of all, or how individual officials sacrifice themselves for their

charges ! " (Sirian, 280) ,

Canopus

does

not

appreciate their civilisation, because it is aimed at the welfare of only one planet, and the rest of the

world booms in misery.

"whole"

which

is

He instructs her about

achieved

by

the

"new

social

developments" (315) through which alone wholeness is possible.

Wholeness is achieved according to

Marx by communism and that is the principle on which Canopus works. significance

and

Ambien

importance

association with Canopus. the other

Canopean

Necessity

Sirians,

victimise

her

I1

but,

consider

suffering from "mental

after

years

of

She becomes an agent of

especially and

understands its

the

her her

unenlightened

fellow an

rulers, outcast,

disequilibrium"(330). The

experience

of

Ambien

11

reminds

us

of

Lynda

Coleridge and Charles Watkins in mental hospitals, who suffered because they seem to know something the others do not.

Lessing

seems

to

believe

that

one

of

the

reasons for the failure of Marxism is that, it has not spread all over the world, as it has been visualised by Marx and Engels but became localised in few countries, where the atrocities committed in order

to execute

the most

noble

ideals of co-

operation and progress began to appal the people. What should have spread all over the globe is the feeling of concern, and universal well being where individuals

will

blossom

along

with

community.

Canopus stands for global unity and the well being of all creatures.

It believes that the world can

not be part alright and part sick.

It is either

"all" alright or "all" sick. Lessing's

firm belief in the cataclysmic end

of the world is another significant factor in an analysis of this kind. As mentioned earlier, it is a recurring theme in Lessing. In the Four Gated Clty,

in Briefing for

a Descent into Hell 203

and

The Memoirs of a Survivor this theme is developed. In the Canopus novels too the main thrust is the same.

The

"end"

and

the

development

of

a

collective mind is the focus of all the five novels in the series.

In Shikasta, after the trial scene where the whites were named as the oppressors and taken to task by the oppressed of the world, atomic bomb is dropped, and the "old white, who was sitting by himself not far from the amphitheatre, was hit by a piece

of

hurt" (416).

stone

By

and

killed.

killing

the

No

one

else

oppressing

was

class,

represented by the old man Lessing confirms her stand against oppression and how it should be dealt with.

She is not calling for a conversion of mind

of the oppressors if so she wouldn't kill the "Old ManN.

In her earlier vision of the ideal city she

had kept the oppressors outside the city, here in Canopus novels she kills them. The atom bomb that is dropped in

the amphitheatre, indicates the

destruction of the entire world, because here, had gathered the representatives of all the people to pass

judgement

against

the

oppressors.

And

amphitheatres were the place, where the poor people provided entertainment for the rulers; and Greece was the place, where humanity perpetuated slavery and oppression for centuries on end.

After the

destruction humanity is united once again in camps and in primitive set up and there a new life based on

co-operation

begins.

established in Shikasta and

A

new

harmony

is

Shammat's influence is

brought under control. People begin to build up the old

destroyed

cities

-

Round

city, star

city,

square city, hexagonal city etc. - Kassim Sherban the adopted son of George Sherban - Johor in action who visits these cities is struck by the harmony he sees there.

He walks in the city, without being

"scared to death" at the sight of "a group of young people". Now he wonders if this was what existed earlier when people lived in harmony and before Shammat destroyed the harmony of their existence. He asks: Do you suppose that living in a town has been like this in the past? I mean people relaxed and easy and things happening the right way

without laws and rules and orders and armies? Do you think that is possible? ( 4 4 3 ) . There is a doubt in the mind of Kassim. Lessing there is no doubt.

But in

She believes firmly

that the perfect city is possible, provided men cooperate with a purpose. In the Marriages Between Zones Three Four and Five this -

perfect harmony is achieved, through the

co-operation of three characters and their people. As

in

the

case

Experiments, who

of

Ambien

I1

undergoes a

in

The

Sirian

transformation

and

learns the laws of Necessity, Al-Ith, Ben Ata and Vahshi

undergo

terrible

transformation

in

the

process of gaining, for themselves and for the people, wholeness and prosperity. The cataclysmic changes Lessing focuses upon in other novels, in the case of environment and in life as a whole is experienced

by

individuals

in

Marriages,

and

through them the entire people and their Zones. Universal welfare is the theme in these novels. The existence of universal inequality is also emphasised

by

Lessing.

She

sees

problems

in

society as interrelated.

When one nation is self

sufficient and revels in wealth, another country sinks deep in poverty and oppression. when some parts of Africa and

famine,

and

thousands

In the 1970s

suffered from draught died

of

starvation,

America had excess crops of apple and maize. They sank cart loads into the sea to stabilise the price crisis.

With Lessing's global view, as expressed

in her canopean novels, one country's

plenty is

only intended to be channelled into the country suffering from want.

It is, this channelling that

we see in Zones Three and Four, Four and Five.

The cataclysmic end of the world in The Making of

the Representative for Planet 8, is brought

about through a natural calamity.

As John Leonard

rightly said, the "novel is about glacier, the glacier that eats up planet 8 " ( 3 4 ) . coming of glacier, the brown

Until

the

skinned black-eyed

vegetarian peoples of planet 8 had known nothing but colour and warmth.

Canopus had beautiful plans

for planet 8, but

the plan is thwarted by

the

coming of the ice.

The wall, built to protect the

people from it, simply crumbles down, with it all

the hopes the people had of the future.

But Johor,

the Canopean emissary visits them, preparing them to accept the inevitable world.

-

the destruction of their

In the course of events every character

undergoes transformation. They grow up from "me" to "we", which according to Johor is the essence of The "SOWF", is re-established in this dying

life.

planet that is how they grow from "me" to "we". Rohanda had become a corrupt planet due to the loss of SOWF.

The failure of Rohanda was responsible

for the destruction of planet

8 , because

eightans were prepared for that planet.

the

The lesson

the Eightans would have learned from Rohanda, they master

from

this

planet

complete destruction.

8

itself

before

its

Hence it is easy for Johor

to lead them out of the "Frozen Planet", with a sense

of

fulfilled

mission,

because

they

have

learned the importance of shedding the ego, and becoming beings of collective sense.

The tension

between individual and society is well resolved and Lessing

throws

light

"collective life", which

upon is

the the

triumph

only

salvation today. Patricia Waugh says:

means

of of

For Lessing, salvation can come only through a profound

and

full

recognition

of

our

relational needs and desires and the attempts to construct a collective world which is not based

on

the

competitive

striving

of

the

caring

for

isolated ego (Waugh (1989), 208) . No

one

others. fellow

nation

can

develop

without

No one person can be alive without his men.

Hence

more

than

any

collective life is important now.

other

time,

That is why

Lessing upholds this belief.

Lessing draws our attention to the fact that the

supreme

party

which

was

formed

for

the

propagation of communism got corrupted gradually from within.

The Canopean agents Nasar, and Incent

are symbolic of the party members who have gone away from the real spirit of communism and became agents of bourgeois thought and activity.

Lessing

believes that, the party can be cleansed only by removing these men from it and treating them for their

sickness

caused

by

corruption.

Another

person who comes in the power of Shammat is Taufig the Canopean Emissary born as John Brent Oxford. He 209

was a

man of good reputation but becomes corrupt

and closed his mind to "truth". He began supporting "every criminal element in our

The birth of Taufig as John Brent

(Shikasta, 328). Oxford

(the) population"

coincided

with

the

loss

Shanunat' s domination of Shikasta.

of

SOWF

and

The intention of

his birth was to curb the influence of Shammat.

So

he started his career "as a saviour of some kind

. . .

as leader of the nation"

.

(101) and he

embodied the "qualities prized in public servants on Shikasta" (103).

But degeneration set in him

slowly. By Forty he was a national figure well versed in crime and deception, a true politician, who ruled the Shikastans after the fa11.(102)

In John Brent Oxford Lessing criticises the politicians

who

themselves

are

destroying that which is noble.

responsible

for

This same John

Brent Oxford is brought in the trial scene at the end of the novel to represent the white race, whom Lessing

holds

responsible

influence upon humanity.

for

the

corrupting

At the end of a shameful

trial, John Brent Oxford is eliminated from the face of the earth by an atom bomb.

John Brent

Oxford represents for Lessing very many

corrupt

elements in society.

corrupt

He

stands for a

politician, a corrupt ruler, a corrupt system and a corrupt

domination,

Lessing

believes,

headed have

by

the

destroyed

whites this

who,

planet

through their unplanned "economic activities". Thus by removing him at the end Lessing confirms her faith that society can be initiated into a new era only by the removal of the Shammatan influence of individualism and corruption. Through

Nasar

Lessing

focuses

upon

the

struggles of individuals to resist the temptation of power and money.

Nasar another emissary of

Canopus, through long association with Shikasta, becomes a slave of "Elyle" (171) from whose circle, he struggles to free himself and at last escapes her control through the help of Ambien Sirian agent.

11,

the

Nasar is the one who gives a clear

cut picture of Shammat to Ambien 11. Shammat is this

-

He tells her:

if you build

a

city

-

perfectly, and exactly, so that every feeling and thought in it is of Canopus - then slowly, the chords start to sound false 21 1

-

at first

just slightly, then more and more - until soon

. . .

the Canopus - nature has gone.

where

every perfection becomes its opposite, that is Shammat (172,173). In this definition of Shanunat Nasar explains its inherent nature.

Any innovative venture aimed

at harmony and happiness is slowly destroyed by its vicious influence.

Often the well meaning, peace

loving leaders themselves become subjects of its torture.

Nasar's struggle remind us of the Octopus

power of Shammat, and of her earlier analogy of the "bourgeois monster" (Ripple,96).

and

the

"bed

rock

dragon"

No one is safe from it, not even the

super powers.

The only way to escape it is to

uproot if from our planet, by re-introducing the S O W , through collective life.

Lessing' s critical understanding of the nature of Shammat and the sincere passion with which she advocates collective life, make

us

believe

strong bond she has cultivated with Marxism.

the She

has always been in search of a remedy for society, and to this end in her adolescent enthusiasm to reform

society

she accepted Marxian 212

philosophy.

That despite various other influences on her she remained

faithful

to

her

early

evidenced by her attachment to it.

influence

is

Her attitude

seems to say that this is the only proven remedy for

the

observed

ills in

of

society.

his

The

What

Turning

Fritjof

Point

Capra

about

the

relevance of Marxism is true in no other person, than in Lessing, because she is a person with a sincere concern for society. "anyone

who

social

seriously

condition of

213)will

be

tries

human

fascinated

According to

understand

kind"

by

to him

the

the

(1983),

(Capra

thoughts

and

philosophy of Marx, and will not reject it for it alone

"contains

a

vision".

Worsely it aims at not just

According

to

Peter

"the destruction of

capitalism", but the ending of that long stretch of human history in which the exploitation of the many has been possible because the few have monopolised the means of production (Peter Worsely, 119).

Lessing had never adhered blindly to Marxism. She

was

very

critical

of

its

flaws.

In

the

Sentimental Agents of Volyen Empire Lessing becomes openly sceptic about Marxism. As

deeply as

she

cares for its philosophy, she exposes its flaws as she did in the Children of Violence series.

As in

the other novels of the series, in this novel too the

Shammatan

power

is

held

responsible

for

changing the young Incent, the Canopean Emissary, from a dutiful and innocent Youth to a verbose and Incent has become a

Rhetoric oriented coward.

victim of Rhetoric. Marx had claimed that Marxism is an action- oriented science which is aimed at bringing changes in society.

In his "Thesis on

Feurbach" he has said 'the philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways;

the point

however, is to change it (Collected Works, Vo1.5, 8). The appeal of Marxism in the modern world was

due to its claim as a science especially a science of action.

But soon this outlook

changed and

science was transformed and came to be considered a philosophy.

Philosophy

as

oriented not action oriented.

we

know

is

theory

Today Marxism is

appreciated more as a philosophy and has given rise to different branches of Marxism, Western Marxism

being one such. According to Lessing the followers ceased to care for action and found shelter in verbosity which she calls redundant Rhetoric.

The

emotionally piqued words uttered by Incent and his companions are examples of Lessingrs sheer contempt for the Modern version of Marxism which believes in words and not in action. Marxism

She firmly believes that

should rid itself of

this Rhetoric, in

order to become effective in the present world. The Sentimental Agents in the Volyen Empire is called

a

"Satirical

therapy"

(Lorna

sage

(1983),30), a satire on the use of words (Rhetoric) in our society by our politicians and petty heroes who

sway

the

utterances.

people

through

Joan D.Vinge and

their

James

demagogic

Frenkel

see

"Rhetoric" as "ultimately responsible for all the misery in the world" resented

by

(J.D.Vinge,8)

Klorathy

of

Canopus

Rhetoric was because

it

"encourages torture, hunger, the enslavement of the entire world" (8). That Lessing directed her Satire against

Marxism

is

evidenced

by

the

following

excerpt from the Sentimental Agents in the Volyen Empire : What, then, is it that w e are aiming at? What? Why, nothing less than

the whole, perfect,

radiant future of us all and our children! 215

What is there to prevent this paradise?

We

all know there is nothing! In our soil lies the wealth of harvest and of minerals. In our seas and in our air, food. In our own hearts, love and the need to live happily in a happy world where sorrow is forgotten! What is it in the past that has given birth to sorrow, has bred unkindness? Why only the lack of the will to abolish these things (83). This passage clearly reflects the jargon of the

Marxist

especially

in

the

belief

of

the

"perfect radiant future" and has vivid echoes of the passage from Communist Manifesto, where Marx speaks

of

the

role

of

the

communist

and

the

proletariat in abolishing the imperfect bourgeois world, through a revolution and establishment of a perfect

connnunist

world,

where

all

the

imperfections existing in the capitalist society will be removed.

The above mentioned points are

scattered about in the slightly long section of the "proletarians and communists" in the Manifesto. The last paragraph of the same section reads:

When,

in

the

distinctions

course of have

productions

have

development, class

disappeared,

and

all

disappeared,

and

all

production has been concentrated in the hands of a vast association of the whole nation, the public

power

character.

will

Political

lose

its

power,

political

properly

so

called, is merely the organised power of one class for oppressing another .

.

.(76).

Marxism proposes in place of the oppressing bourgeois

society,

the

association", in which

establishment

of

"an

"the free development of

each is the condition for the free development of all" (76).

Such perfect world order would

about in the future.

come

What prevented the people

from achieving this happy world order was the lack of knowledge, to achieve it.

That is why Marx

exhorted the people to unite and fight against that system, which had kept them slaves for ages (76). Lessing's The Good Terrorist, is a novel where Rhetoric

is

condemned.

The

following

address

delivered by Jasper at a C.C.U. meeting is another

proof

of

Lessing's

criticism

of

the

Marxian

Rhetoric: Comrades! Welcome to you all, Comrades. is for all of us a historic moment.

This

There are

very few of us in this room today, but we are a chosen few, chosen by the time we live in, chosen by history itself!-and there is nothing we can not achieve if we set ourselves to do it.

. . .

The forces that will liberate us all

are already being vanguard

of

forged.

these

We

forces,

are in

the

and

the

responsibility for a glorious future is with us, in our hand! (220). Any

thus.

speech by a communist begins and ends

Lessing

looks

at

it

as

most

ridiculous

because Jasper who is talking about the historical moment and liberation is a parasite on Alice. None of the members of the C.C.U living in flat numbers 45 and 43 are serious about anything except in

holding a few meetings and speaking a few verbostic words as used by Jasper.

Hence there is nothing

surprising if she portrayed

Incent the Canopean

agent as, a fallen victim to Rhetoric. 218

Lessing sees the

transformation of the action

oriented science into a words oriented philosophy also as the result of the corrupting influence of Shammat. It is with the motto of corrupting the young mind and diverting them from their commitment that Shammat agents, especially Krolgul organised a Rhetoric school under the pretext of offering good training in public

speaking.

But

the innocent

victims do not often understand the trap Shammat has

laid

for

them.

The

Canopus

agent

Incent

becomes a victim, but he was taken away from the school and

was subjected to complete immersion. In

other words he is subjected to

re-education to

Canopean ways. The removal of Incent to a hospital where Rhetoric is treated affirms Lessing's belief that Marxism can become once again an acceptable philosophy if it can get out of its muddle of rhetoric. That is, if once again

its exponents

become dedicated men who serve not through words but through actions. In one of her lectures she had said that Marxism is the realisation of the long cherished

dream

of

man,

and

those

who

cut

themselves away from it, cut themselves from three fourth

of

humanity, because

even

today Marxism

inspires thousands of

people

under developed countries.

in

developing

and

It gives even today

impetus to people to fight against oppression and claim their birth rights.

Hence it is not easy

even today to be blind to its merits (Prisons,84).

The

foregoing analysis of

the

five novels

brings out more clearly Lessing's adherence to her adolescent philosophy.

It has

opened

for

vistas unknown even to her contemporaries.

her When

all her comrades were affected by the "disillusion" of Marxism delved

Lessing,

deeper

situation.

though

and

part

critically

of

the

crowd,

analysed

the

She opened her eyes wide to its faults

and scathingly criticised it.

She bemoaned

the

loss of focus of the philosophy and its degradation as a "Redundant Rhetoric". Lessing is very emphatic in her belief that Marxism has put its finger on the

pressing

ecology,

and

problems once

the

of

society,

nations

of

especially the

world

understand the real significance of the philosophy of

planned

production,

giving

emphasis

to

alienation of human beings and nature, we

dewill

protect our world whole and entire.

Fritjof Capra

says: In Marx1s time, when resources were plentiful and the population was small, human labour was indeed

the

production.

most But

important as

the

contribution

twentieth

to

century

unfolded, the labour theory of process has become

so

complex

that

it

is

no

longer

possible to really separate the contributions of land, labour, capital and other factors (Capra (1983), 216). Hence, today his thoughts about "nature in the process Michael

of

production"

Harrington

has

is

highly

emphasised

important.

the

need

of

reassessing the Marxian thought in the light of the modern century (as cited by Capra (1983), 217) . He says that those critics who accept his theories as exclusively

deterministic and materialistic

have

not understood Marx in a clear perspective; because his theory consistently reflected a keen awareness of society and nature as an organic whole.

In his

Economic and Philosophic manuscript Marx wrote:

Nature is man's

organic body - nature, that

is, in so far as it is not itself the human body. Man lives on nature means that nature is his

body,

with

which

he

must

remain

in

continuous intercourse if he is not to die. That man's

physical

and

spiritual

life

is

linked to nature means simply that nature is linked to itself, for man is part of nature (Robert C Tucker, 61). Though ecology was not a burning problem in Marx's time he was actually aware of the ecological impact of

capitalist

economics,

and

said

about

the

exploitation of soil by capitalist agriculturists.

Marx's

thoughts about ecology did not attract

much attention from his followers, who themselves joined the capitalist gang in exploiting the soil and destroying the ecology. Lessing on the other hand, emphasises, the danger of exploiting nature. In

all

her

novels,

her

characters

are

deeply

attached to the land. In the Grass is Singing Dick Turner is portrayed as a lover of trees, birds, animals and the soil.

He refuses to grow rich in

order to protect them. He resents other farmers 222

like Charlie Slatter who exploit the soil, through "inhuman" cultivation. Martha Quest spends hours on end in communion with nature. Thomas Stern's moment of enlightenment is in the "garden loft", Martha Quest

adopted

children,

reorganise

the

society

after the "holocaust" in nature based camps in the remotest parts of the world. shocked

to

animals

by

undergoes seal.

Charles Watkins is

see the destruction of selfish

human

difficulties

in

the sea and

beings. protecting

Kate

Brown

her

dream

The Survivor and Emily protect "Hugo" from

Cannibals.

They prefer to die than to let Hugo

"roasted".

The cities that she builds in Shikasta

is embellished by trees and animals.

The people of

Zone Three are people who live in perfect harmony with nature, and one of the lessons Al-Ith teaches Ben Ata is to protect nature and animals and to understand Agents

their

feelings.

she focuses upon

In

The

Sentimental

the destruction of

the

entire world through man' s developmental works. The picture she draws, in this novel, of the human enemy is very frightening.

The black Maken who

travels on animals covered by the black dress of the birds is symbolic of the black fumes we let

free to rise to the sky. Their descent upon us as Maken the inhabitants of 'PE 70r(260) threatening to

swallow

us

become

symbolic

of

awaiting us through air pollution.

the

danger

Lessing does

not destroy mankind, she wants us to get out of the muddle we have created. She suggests the remedy to save our world through the clue she provides us. The Volyendestans who realises that they cannot fight back the Makens welcome them but because of the" unfriendly Volyendestan atmosphere the "Makens felt lethargicW(218) and they

left Volyendesta. We

are called to make our world unfriendly to disaster by

saving

production.

our

nature,

through

better

planned

Stop polluting our atmosphere by black

Makens of disastrous fumes.

Once this Makens have

retreated we will have clear skies, "without black holes

in

the

bellies

of

the

craft"

(220)

to

threaten our civilisation. Lessing's

Space Fiction

thus is a valuable

critique of Marxism where she attacks the redundant rhetoric and the flaws in the Marxian dialectics. She suggests the possibilities of rejuvenating the spirit of Marxism by once again giving emphasis to 0

the action oriented philosophy and purging it from verbosity and theory. Lessing believes that the world can be healed once again by collective effort, by re-establishing the "substance of we feeling" . ecological problem caused by

Presenting the

unplanned production,

which Marx has envisaged as the greatest problem of capitalism, Lessing puts her clarion call to make our universe unfriendly to disaster, and to check the destruction of the universe.

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C.J.

Kay

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Politics:

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of

the

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Fritjof.

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1982

Society

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The

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