In C.S. Lewis’s Out of the Silent Planet, Elwin Ransom is taken to the fictional planet Malacandra.
Malacandra is the name used by its inhabitants for the world that humans traditionally call Mars. Ransom, a philologist, is kidnapped by two men and transported through space before escaping and encountering several intelligent species. His knowledge of language becomes central to his survival and to the novel’s exploration of culture, science, and morality.
The book was published in 1938 and began Lewis’s Ransom Trilogy, also called the Space Trilogy. The second novel, Perelandra, takes place on another world, while Thulcandra is the inhabitants’ name for Earth. These similar names are a frequent source of confusion.
Lewis combines planetary adventure with Christian and philosophical themes. His Mars is not simply a realistic astronomical setting; it is an imagined society that allows him to contrast human violence and pride with other forms of intelligent life.