Micromega. Voltaire, 1752. Short story.
“But there was, unfortunately, a little animalcule in a square hat who interrupted all the other philosopher animalcules. He said he knew the secret: that everything would be found in the Summa of Saint Thomas. He looked at the two heavenly inhabitants and argued that his people , their worlds, their suns, their stars, had been made exclusively for mankind. In this speech, our two travelers almost collapsed with that inextinguishable laughter that, according to Homer, is shared with the gods.. Their shoulders and stomachs heaved and they went down, and in these convulsions the vessel that the Siriano had in his fingernail fell into one of the pockets of the Saturnino’s pants”.
Micromega background
This is the first. It is the first short story about aliens, the first short story to question the position of humans in the universe in relation to aliens, and the first to suggest that aliens could be our equals, even our superiors. It is also, at 260 years old, one of the earliest existing science fiction texts.
This is Aliens-come-to-earth, Sci-Fi Patient Zero right here, and he certainly didn’t keep his ideas to himself.
Since it’s one of the founding works of science fiction, you can see quite a few quintessential elements throughout it: aliens think a little differently than we do (although anthropomorphism is a bit rampant), Voltaire uses aliens to make a point about human civilization, and raises questions about why we matter, philosophy in general, and what else is out there.
Plus, he’s Voltaire. He shamelessly talks about war, religion, romance, and arrogance, and has a lot of fun doing it.
Micromegas premise
The story begins with the introduction of Micromegas, a 120,000 foot tall alien from an unnamed planet around the star Sirius, and much shorter (6,000 foot tall) and less sensory advanced (with 72 senses, unlike the almost 1,000 senses of Micromegas) Saturnine . They come to Earth, and due to their rather unimaginable size compared to our typical height, they at first believe the planet to be uninhabited.
Soon, however, they see a whale and believe that it is the best, if not the only, life form on Earth. But then they come across an explorer ship in the Baltic Sea and spend some time discussing philosophical and scientific differences with humans.
Voltaire being Voltaire, focuses mainly on the stupidity of war. He starts it off by wowing aliens with our practical science, which wasn’t bad in the 18th century, but then turns back to our penchant for fighting and the dozens of conflicting philosophies about meaningful existence. This contrast confuses the aliens a bit: they know we’re smart but can’t figure out why we’re so stupid too, and then they leave, presumably to continue exploring the universe.
The story is short (half an hour, tops), to the point, and features plenty of commentary on the established authorities. It also uses some conventions that writers today can’t, like blatant anthropomorphism, unexplained alien powers, and humans rationally accepting the existence of aliens and discussing politics with them while stuck on a fingernail at least 60,000 feet above the ground, but is the first alien, anything fictional: we have to give a little leeway.
Who should read this story?
All the world. Really. Micromegas is not only groundbreaking alien fiction and a brief look at the 18th century and Voltaire’s philosophy, but it’s free. More specifically, I suppose, I would recommend this tale to anyone interested in the intersection of aliens and philosophy, as well as anyone looking for Voltairean political sarcasm.
Final verdict on Micromegas
While Micromegas probably isn’t the kind of tale you’d want to curl up with and reread on a rainy afternoon, it’s definitely worth it. I really like the implications that Voltaire raises, as well as the opportunity to examine them without a war-torn or potentially explosive backdrop. There are also quite a few good one-liners about whales, hats, and conceit.
The story is free (and in English) courtesy of ReadBookOnline.com. Also, LibraVox has a free recording along with a few other sci-fi short stories.