The Lovers (Farmer novella and novel)

"The Lovers"
Short story by Philip José Farmer
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Science fiction
Publication
Published in	Startling Stories
Media type	Magazine (later expanded as paperback book)
Publication date	1952, 1961, 1979

The Lovers is a science fiction novella by American writer Philip José Farmer (1918-2009), first published in August 1952 in Startling Stories. In 1961, the work was expanded and published as a stand-alone novel by Ballantine Books. In 1979, the novel was reissued by Ballantine as a Del Rey Classic in a final revised ("definitive") edition. Hailed as a bold and pioneering exploration of religion and sexuality, the original version won Farmer the Hugo Award for "Best New SF Author or Artist" in 1953.

Plot summary

Linguist Hal Yarrow is a crew member of the military starship Gabriel, dispatched by a 31st-century religious tyranny on Earth to the distant planet Ozagen, which is inhabited by a sentient, but technologically inferior, arthropod (insect-like) race known contemptuously as Wogglebugs, or Wogs. Happy for a mission that has allowed him to escape an unhappy marriage, Yarrow finds that the worst of Earth has followed him in the form of Pornsen, his personal minder ("Guardian Angel"), vigilant for any evidence of sin or wrong thinking. Conditioned by a lifetime of submission, Yarrow attempts to lose himself in the study of the Ozagen language. On a visit to ancient ruins built by long vanished mammalian humanoids, he encounters Jeannette, an attractive and (seemingly) almost-human fugitive — a remnant of her all-but-extinct race. For Yarrow's oppressive, puritanical society, unconsecrated contact with any female is forbidden — and the love that he develops for this "alien" is beyond unimaginable. Yarrow covertly harbors Jeannette in his lodgings while secretly spying on the amiably tolerant Wogs. He also conceals from his Wog hosts the real purpose of the Earthmen's visit, which includes not just colonization, but genocide. Ozagen and its Wog inhabitants, however, are harboring many unexpected secrets from their villainous visitors.

Reception

According to the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, the novella was "originally rejected by John W. Campbell Jr. of Astounding Science-Fiction and H.L. Gold of Galaxy Science Fiction", but "burst onto the sf scene" and "gained instant acclaim when it did appear" in Startling Stories.... "It concerned Xenobiology, Parasitism and Sex, an explosive mixture, certainly for the Genre SF of that era; transgressive mixtures of this sort would feature repeatedly in Farmer's best work."

In 2010, Gary K. Wolfe hailed The Lovers as "one of the most spectacular debuts in the history of American science fiction".

See also

• Philip José Farmer bibliography
• Insectoids in science fiction