영어로 읽는 고전 _ 조셉 새먹슨의 괴물
조셉 새먹슨의 "괴물"은 1950년대 초에 쓰인 SF 소설이다. 화성을 배경으로 한 이 이야기는 키드 가족이 행성의 다양한 포식 생물들과 맞서 싸우면서 이 크고 굶주린 동물들이 가하는 위협 속에서도 삶을 유지하려고 노력하는 고군분투를 포착한다. 이 소설은 식민화의 도전과 미래 환경에서 관료주의가 가져오는 유머러스하면서도 심각한 결과들을 다룬다."괴물"에서 앤서니, 앨리스, 그리고 그들의 아들 스몰로 구성된 키드 가족은 배저린과 스나플 같은 무서운 생물들이 득실거리는 고립된 화성 가정의 위험과 씨름한다. 안전을 확보하려고 시도하면서, 그들은 적절한 무기 확보 노력을 방해하는 서투른 관료 T.I. 태플링과 거래하는 좌절감을 유머러스하게 헤쳐 나간다. 보호용으로 사육된 거대한 개 로버의 도착은 안도감과 새로운 도전을 동시에 가져다주며, 키드 가족은 이 색다른 수호자와 함께하는 삶에 적응하는 법을 배운다. 이야기가 펼쳐지면서, 생존, 가족, 그리고 적대적인 행성에서 삶을 관리하는 불합리함이라는 주제들을 영리하게 엮어낸다.
Classics Read in English _ Monster by Joseph Samachson
Joseph Samachson's "Monster" emerges as an entertaining early 1950s science fiction tale that combines frontier survival with satirical commentary on administrative incompetence. Set within the harsh Martian landscape, the narrative chronicles the daily trials of the Kidd family?Anthony, Alice, and their young son Small?as they establish their precarious homestead among the planet's hostile wildlife.
The family's existence becomes a constant battle against indigenous predators, including the formidable badgerines and snaffles, whose appetites pose an ongoing threat to human settlers. Samachson uses these creatures not merely as antagonists but as symbols of the unpredictable challenges faced by those who dare to colonize alien worlds.
Central to the story's humor is the character of T.I. Tapling, a bureaucratic obstacle whose inefficiency creates additional perils for the already beleaguered colonists. Through Tapling's bumbling interference with the family's attempts to obtain proper defensive equipment, Samachson delivers a sharp critique of red tape and institutional incompetence that resonates beyond its futuristic setting.
The introduction of Rover, an enormous canine specifically bred for planetary protection, shifts the narrative's dynamics. This unconventional guardian represents both technological solution and new complication, as the Kidds must learn to coexist with their oversized protector while adapting to Mars's unforgiving environment.
Samachson successfully weaves together themes of pioneering spirit, family resilience, and bureaucratic absurdity, creating a work that functions as both adventure story and social commentary on the practical realities of interplanetary expansion.
Among the contents
There was a faint scratching at the door, so faint that Alice Kidd, who had been listening fearfully for precisely that sound, was at first not certain that she heard it. But, as she came close to the doorway, it was no longer possible to doubt, and a chill went through her at the thought of the creature panting eagerly on the other side. Now she could hear it whine, and, despite her knowledge that the gesture was an idle one, she could not help once more feeling the bolt behind the door. Then she made sure that the shutters too were securely barred, although these were usually in less danger; most of the animals could not apply pressure very far above the ground.
Small was staring at her, not particularly frightened, but very much interested. Her face, she thought, must be pale through the radiation tan. Ordinarily, there was nothing timid or fragile about her, or she would never have accompanied her husband to Mars; but all the same, she felt weak and helpless before the danger that threatened. And she shuddered as her five-year-old son asked, "Can it get in, Mommy?"
