Jack Butler

Prof. Arielle Saiber

World Science Fiction

28 February 2020

Beyond Humankind: Simak’s Criticism of Anthropocentrism in “Desertion”

“’They would turn me back into a dog,’ said Towser. ‘And me,’ said Fowler, ‘back into a man’” (Clifford D. Simak, p. 188). At the conclusion of Simak’s 1944 short story “Desertion,” his protagonist Kent Fowler and his canine companion Towser reject their respective human and dog bodies, choosing instead to continue on in their new forms. It is a moment of transcendence, in which Simak allows his character to step away from the human condition. Simak’s exploration of this theme reflects his role as one of the writers at the forefront of the Golden Age of science fiction, in which writers used the genre to experiment with other ways of life beyond human existence. Through Simak’s use of plot, language, and style, “Desertion” emphasizes the naivety of the human race and offers an escapist vision of the possibilities beyond simply what we already know.

Simak’s story is unique first in its exploration of humanity’s relationship not only to other beings from a world beyond our own, but to another being with whom we already share Earth. This is the first plot element which allows Simak to paint humans in a self-centered light. While not explicitly stated in the story, there is an underlying sense of the superiority which humans feels over dogs like Towser, which extends even to the reader. While Fowler clearly has love for his dog and Miss Stanley is quick to defend him, the communication barrier is not enough to elevate Towser to the humans’ level of intelligence. Simak hints at Towser being of greater intellect with his small moments of communication such as thumping his tail in response to a question. However, the structure of the story makes it so that only in retrospect does the reader see this as intelligent communication, after Towser’s sentience is revealed. Science fiction so often deals with other forms of intelligent life from distant worlds, yet Simak makes the case that we need not look further than our own dogs to find connections to other lifeforms. He is criticizing the anthropocentric view that humanity needs to venture far to find life we can truly connect with.

Simak’s criticism of anthropocentrism in “Desertion” extends to the human conception of the physical worlds we occupy¾both our bodies, and the spaces in which we live. Before being transformed, Fowler acknowledges the apparent intelligence of the Lopers, but still doubts the species’ ability to become a new body for human life: “Perhaps the Lopers were so alien there was no common ground for human knowledge and the Jovian conception of existence to meet and work together” (Simak, p. 183). Simak’s language here is deliberately chosen to show Fowler’s misunderstanding of the Lopers’ intelligence. By describing human sentience as “knowledge” and the Lopers’ sentience as a “conception of existence,” he shows how Fowler views the human way of living as the default, based in intelligence and awareness, and the Jovian way as simply an alternative. Specifically by using the word “knowledge,” Simak is making the implication that Fowler feels that the Lopers’ are not smart enough to work with humans. Simak could be using this story as a metaphor to highlight human flaws which plague exploration and connection on Earth just as they plague exploration in space in the story. Anthropomorphism in “Desertion” can serve as a parallel to ethnocentrism and racism. Simak deliberately paints humans as inherently egotistical, with the assumption that our way of existing is automatically the best. It is worth noting that the only way for Fowler to realize the possibility of forms beyond the human body is to physically transform into a new form and experience it for himself.  Perhaps Simak is saying that only when man forces himself to occupy another perspective can he fully realize the limited nature of his own.

Fowler also comes to realize that not only was he wrong in assuming that the human body was superior, but that the worlds built by humans were superior to those unexplored. He first describes Jupiter in a way meant to invoke fear, using words such as “monstrous” (Simak, p. 178), “choking,” and “bitter” (Simak, p. 180) to characterize the planet’s atmosphere.  The syntax is logical and negative, again promoting an anthropocentric view by describing Jupiter in terms of how it would affect humans. Similarly to how humans on Earth tend to view countries other than their own as hostile and unwelcoming, Fowler doesn’t even consider thinking of Jupiter differently despite knowing that the Lopers can thrive in its atmosphere. The language used by Simak shifts once Fowler inhabits the new Jovian body which allows him to experience the gas world differently¾now the syntax becomes abstract and full of strong imagery: “pure ecstasy across a painted sky” (Simak, p. 184), “a spray of magic sound,” “a glittering rainbow of many hundred colors” (Simak, p. 186).

Writing “Desertion” at the tail end of the most destructive war in human history, Simak clearly did not think too favorably of the human species. At its core, the story is about the deeply flawed nature of humans, and our inability to see those flaws. Fowler discovers a way of existing that is beyond the rational, logical nature of human thought, and chooses to abandon humanity instead of return to a dull existence. His choice is presented by Simak not as cowardly, but as admirable. The beauty and connection found once Fowler becomes untethered to the human existence is enough to justify leaving it. His rejection of the human condition is characteristic of a Golden Age writer, dissatisfied with the petty conflicts of World War II and yearning for more beyond our human existence. While Simak’s view on humanity is pessimistic and cynical, he offers hope that humankind can occupy a different perspective and move past our inherently egotistical nature.

Works Cited

Simak, Clifford D. “Desertion” (1944). The Wesleyan Anthology of Science Fiction. Ed. Arthur B. Evans, et al. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 2019. 178-188.