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'''Out of the Silent Planet''' is the first book by [[C. S. Lewis]] in his famous space trilogy. It is dedicated to his brother, Warnie H. Lewis. It was first published in 1943.
'''Out of the Silent Planet''' is the first book by [[C. S. Lewis]] in his famous space trilogy. It is dedicated to his brother, Warnie H. Lewis. It was first published in 1943.
[[Image:Out of the Silent Planet.jpg|thumb|book cover]]
[[Image:Out of the Silent Planet.jpg|thumb|book cover]]
The three books in the trilogy, which are only loosely connected, are ''Out of the Silent Planet,'' ''Perelandra,'' and ''That Hideous Strength.'' They take place on Mars, Venus, and Earth respectively.
The three books in the trilogy, which are only loosely connected, are ''Out of the Silent Planet,'' ''Perelandra,'' and ''That Hideous Strength.'' They take place on Mars, Venus, and Earth respectively. They are sometimes referred to as the "Random trilogy," a philologist<ref>A philologist is a professor specializing in the historical relationships of languages</ref> named Elwin Ransom appearing in all three. C. S. Lewis' friend J. R. R. Tolkien was a philologist, while to some the word "ransom" evokes the atonement of Christ.
One of the ideas that C. S. Lewis was trying to present in these novels is that the word "space" is wrong, charged with the notion of emptiness, and that it should be thought of as ''heaven.'' Earth, which in these books is called Thulcandra, "the silent planet," is under the influence of evil. It has been sealed off from the rest of the universe to prevent it from infecting the rest. In Perelandra, Lewis refers to "the vast astronomic distances which are God's quarantine regulations." Lewis appears to be suggesting that God intends for humans to remain confined to the Earth, and that human attempts to travel between the planets are blasphemous.
One of the ideas that C. S. Lewis was trying to present in these novels is that the word "space" is wrong, charged with the notion of emptiness, and that it should be thought of as ''heaven.'' Earth, which in these books is called Thulcandra, "the silent planet," is under the influence of evil. It has been sealed off from the rest of the universe to prevent it from infecting the rest. In Perelandra, Lewis refers to "the vast astronomic distances which are God's quarantine regulations." Lewis appears to be suggesting that God intends for humans to remain confined to the Earth, and that human attempts to travel between the planets are blasphemous.