''Vulcan's Hammer'' is a 1960
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
novel
A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...
by American writer
Philip K. Dick. It was released originally as an
Ace Double
American company Ace Books began publishing genre fiction starting in 1952. Initially these were mostly in tête-bêche format with the ends of the two parts meeting in the middle and with a divider between them which functioned as the rear cover ...
. This has been considered to be the final outing of Dick's 1950s style
pulp
Pulp may refer to:
* Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit
Engineering
* Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture
* Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper
* Molded pulp, a packaging material
...
science fiction writing, before his better-received work such as the
Hugo Award
The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier a ...
-winning ''
Man in the High Castle'', published a year later.
Plot summary
In the year 2029, the Earth is run by the Unity organisation after the
Third World War. Unity runs the planet, controlling humans from childhood
education
Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...
onwards through the Vulcan series of
artificial intelligences
Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech re ...
, but is fought by the Healer movement.
Unity Director William Barris discovers that the Vulcan 3 computer has become
sentient
Sentience is the capacity to experience feelings and sensations. The word was first coined by philosophers in the 1630s for the concept of an ability to feel, derived from Latin '' sentientem'' (a feeling), to distinguish it from the ability to ...
and is considering drastic action to combat what it sees as a threat to itself. Vulcan 3 has been kept ignorant about information related to the Healer revolutionary movement by Managing Director Jason Dills, who is still loyal to its (also
sentient
Sentience is the capacity to experience feelings and sensations. The word was first coined by philosophers in the 1630s for the concept of an ability to feel, derived from Latin '' sentientem'' (a feeling), to distinguish it from the ability to ...
) predecessor, Vulcan 2. Vulcan 2 fears that it will soon be superseded by Vulcan 3, and previously established the Healers as a movement to overthrow its successor.
Dill and Barris begin to suspect one another, as Dill has received a letter that refers to Barris's previous contact with the Healers, but Vulcan 2 suffers partial damage in a terrorist attack. It advises Dill not to inform Vulcan 3 about the existence of the Healers, for fear that Vulcan 3 will order their mass execution. However, Vulcan 3 has already noticed the gap in available data about the rebels, and manufactured killer androids of its own.
Barris and Dill resolve their differences and together attend an extraordinary Director's Council meeting at the Unity Control Building in Geneva. Jason Dill is presented with an indictment for
treason
Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...
for having withheld data about the Healers from Vulcan 3. The meeting turns into a
melee
A melee ( or , French: mêlée ) or pell-mell is disorganized hand-to-hand combat in battles fought at abnormally close range with little central control once it starts. In military aviation, a melee has been defined as " air battle in which ...
, during which Dill is killed.
The directors split into pro and anti-Vulcan 3 factions, with some directors joining forces with the Healers.
Barris escapes to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, meets up with Father Fields, and plans an attack upon Vulcan 3. The anti-Vulcan 3 forces make their move, resulting in the destruction of the artificial intelligence. Finally, humanity is freed from Unity and its
technocratic
Technocracy is a form of government in which the decision-maker or makers are selected based on their expertise in a given area of responsibility, particularly with regard to scientific or technical knowledge. This system explicitly contrasts wi ...
dictatorship
A dictatorship is a form of government which is characterized by a leader, or a group of leaders, which holds governmental powers with few to no limitations on them. The leader of a dictatorship is called a dictator. Politics in a dictatorship are ...
.
Publication details
The novel is an expansion of a
novella
A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian ''novella'' meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) facts ...
that was first printed in ''
Future Science Fiction
''Future Science Fiction'' and ''Science Fiction Stories'' were two American science fiction magazines that were published under various names between 1939 and 1943 and again from 1950 to 1960. Both publications were edited by Charles Hornig fo ...
'' magazine in 1956.
''Vulcan's Hammer'' was first published as a novel by
Ace Books
Ace Books is a publisher of science fiction (SF) and fantasy books founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn. It began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns, and soon branched out into other genres, publishing its first scienc ...
as one half of
Ace Double
American company Ace Books began publishing genre fiction starting in 1952. Initially these were mostly in tête-bêche format with the ends of the two parts meeting in the middle and with a divider between them which functioned as the rear cover ...
D-457, bound
dos-à-dos
Dos-à-dos (French for "back-to-back") may refer to:
*Dosado or do-si-do, dance move
*Dos-à-dos binding
In bookbinding, a dos-à-dos binding ( or , from the French for "back-to-back") is a binding structure in which two separate books are bo ...
with
John Brunner's ''The Skynappers''. It was republished in 2000 by the UK
Orion Publishing Group
Orion Publishing Group Ltd. is a UK-based book publisher. It was founded in 1991 and acquired Weidenfeld & Nicolson the following year. The group has published numerous bestselling books by notable authors including Ian Rankin, Michael Connelly, ...
in an omnibus volume containing three of Dick's novels originally published as Ace Doubles, the other two being ''
The Man Who Japed
''The Man Who Japed'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Philip K. Dick, first published in 1956. Although one of Dick's lesser-known novels, it features several of the ideas and themes that recur throughout his later works. The "jap ...
'' and ''
Dr. Futurity''.
Adaptation
In November 2021, a film adaptation of ''Vulcan's Hammer'' was announced. The film will be directed by
Francis Lawrence
Francis Lawrence (born March 26, 1971) is an Austrian-born American filmmaker and producer. After establishing himself as a director of music videos and commercials, Lawrence made his feature-length directorial debut with the superhero thrille ...
, with
New Republic Pictures
New Republic Pictures is an American production company and independent financier of feature films founded by Brian Oliver in 2017.
History
Through partnerships with major studios and foreign sales companies, New Republic brings outstanding ...
, Lawrence’s about:blank and
Electric Shepherd Productions
Philip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928March 2, 1982), often referred to by his initials PKD, was an American science fiction writer. He wrote 44 novels and about 121 short stories, most of which appeared in science fiction magazines during his l ...
producing.
References
Sources
*''Counterfeit Worlds: Philip K Dick on Film'', p. 28, by Brian J Robb
*Andrew Butler: ''The Pocket Essential Philip K. Dick'': Harpenden: Pocket Essentials: 2007:
External links
Official PKDick website review
{{Philip K. Dick
1960 American novels
1960 science fiction novels
Ace Books books
American post-apocalyptic novels
American science fiction novels
Novels about artificial intelligence
Fiction set in 2029
Novels by Philip K. Dick