The Body and the Universe. Corporeality in Stanisław Lem’s "Return from the Stars"
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Keywords

Lem
body
corporeality
natural
artificial

How to Cite

Kucharczyk, Łukasz. (2018). The Body and the Universe. Corporeality in Stanisław Lem’s "Return from the Stars". Bibliotekarz Podlaski, 39(2), 279–298. https://doi.org/10.36770/bp.120

Abstract

The article analyzes the meanings generated by categories such as body and corporeality in Stanisław Lem’s "Return from the Stars", a si-fi novel about the return of an astronaut from his space journey
back to Earth. Drawing on Einstein’s twin paradox, Lem shows a situation, when after a 10-year-long journey, the protagonist sees the world which is 127 years older. The world is marked by decadence
and is populated by an egalitarian society. Within such a context, Lem depicts the complexity of the problem of corporeality – the body, for example, functions in the narrative as a metaphor for the epistemological era of modernism. It also serves as a mask and costume.
Aestheticism and old age are given equal prominence in Lem’s novel. The body is an integral part of the universe, and, at the same time, a borderline between the temporal and the transcendent. Besides, it is
contrasted with the artificial body. The latter juxtaposition enables a critical reflection on the influence of bioengineering on human evolution.

https://doi.org/10.36770/bp.120
PDF (Język Polski)

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