Camp Concentration
Encyclopedia
Camp Concentration is a 1968 science fiction
novel by American author Thomas M. Disch
.
, in which the United States
is apparently criminally involved (it is noted at one point that the US is waging germ warfare in "the so-called neutral
countries"). The President of the United States
during this fictional war is Robert McNamara
.
, lapsed Catholic
and conscientious objector
Louis Sacchetti is sent to a secret military installation called Camp Archimedes
, where military prisoners are injected with a form of syphilis
intended to make them geniuses (hence the punning reference to "concentration" in the novel's title). By breaking down rigid categories in the mind (according to a definition of genius put forward by Arthur Koestler
), the disease makes the thought process both faster and more flexible; it also causes physical breakdown and, within nine months, death.
The book is told in the form of Sacchetti's diary, and includes literary references to the story of Faust
(at one point the prisoners stage Christopher Marlowe
's Doctor Faustus
and Sacchetti's friendship with ringleader Mordecai Washington parallels Faust's with Mephistopheles
). It only becomes clear that Sacchetti himself has syphilis as his diary entries refer to his increasingly poor health, and become progressively more florid, until almost descending into insanity.
After a test run on the prisoners, a megalomaniac nuclear physicist
has himself injected with the disease, joins Camp Archimedes with his team of student helpers, and sets about trying to end the human race.
The prisoners in the book appear to be fascinated by alchemy
, which they used as an elaborate cover for their escape plans. Sacchetti, who is obese, has a number of ironic visions involving other obese historical and intellectual figures, such as Thomas Aquinas
. The novel's ending may owe something to the episode "Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling
" from the television
series The Prisoner
, for which Disch wrote a spinoff novel.
novel Doctor Faustus, which is about a composer named Adrian Leverkühn who intentionally contracts syphilis.
Disch's book mentions a female composer named Adrienne Leverkuhn.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel by American author Thomas M. Disch
Thomas M. Disch
Thomas Michael Disch was an American science fiction author and poet. He won the Hugo Award for Best Related Book – previously called "Best Non-Fiction Book" – in 1999, and he had two other Hugo nominations and nine Nebula Award nominations to his credit, plus one win of the John W...
.
Plot introduction
The book is set during a war, projected from the Vietnam WarVietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, in which the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
is apparently criminally involved (it is noted at one point that the US is waging germ warfare in "the so-called neutral
Neutral country
A neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...
countries"). The President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
during this fictional war is Robert McNamara
Robert McNamara
Robert Strange McNamara was an American business executive and the eighth Secretary of Defense, serving under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson from 1961 to 1968, during which time he played a large role in escalating the United States involvement in the Vietnam War...
.
Plot summary
PoetPoetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, lapsed Catholic
Lapsed Catholic
A lapsed Catholic is a person who has ceased practicing the Catholic faith, in the sense of attending Mass. Such a person may still identify as a Catholic.-"Lapsed Catholic" and "ex-Catholic":...
and conscientious objector
Conscientious objector
A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, and/or religion....
Louis Sacchetti is sent to a secret military installation called Camp Archimedes
Archimedes
Archimedes of Syracuse was a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor, and astronomer. Although few details of his life are known, he is regarded as one of the leading scientists in classical antiquity. Among his advances in physics are the foundations of hydrostatics, statics and an...
, where military prisoners are injected with a form of syphilis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
intended to make them geniuses (hence the punning reference to "concentration" in the novel's title). By breaking down rigid categories in the mind (according to a definition of genius put forward by Arthur Koestler
Arthur Koestler
Arthur Koestler CBE was a Hungarian author and journalist. Koestler was born in Budapest and, apart from his early school years, was educated in Austria...
), the disease makes the thought process both faster and more flexible; it also causes physical breakdown and, within nine months, death.
The book is told in the form of Sacchetti's diary, and includes literary references to the story of Faust
Faust
Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend; a highly successful scholar, but also dissatisfied with his life, and so makes a deal with the devil, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures. Faust's tale is the basis for many literary, artistic, cinematic, and musical...
(at one point the prisoners stage Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe was an English dramatist, poet and translator of the Elizabethan era. As the foremost Elizabethan tragedian, next to William Shakespeare, he is known for his blank verse, his overreaching protagonists, and his mysterious death.A warrant was issued for Marlowe's arrest on 18 May...
's Doctor Faustus
The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus
The Tragicall History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus, commonly referred to simply as Doctor Faustus, is a play by Christopher Marlowe, based on the Faust story, in which a man sells his soul to the devil for power and knowledge...
and Sacchetti's friendship with ringleader Mordecai Washington parallels Faust's with Mephistopheles
Mephistopheles
Mephistopheles is a demon featured in German folklore...
). It only becomes clear that Sacchetti himself has syphilis as his diary entries refer to his increasingly poor health, and become progressively more florid, until almost descending into insanity.
After a test run on the prisoners, a megalomaniac nuclear physicist
Nuclear physics
Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interactions of atomic nuclei. The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons technology, but the research has provided application in many fields, including those...
has himself injected with the disease, joins Camp Archimedes with his team of student helpers, and sets about trying to end the human race.
The prisoners in the book appear to be fascinated by alchemy
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
, which they used as an elaborate cover for their escape plans. Sacchetti, who is obese, has a number of ironic visions involving other obese historical and intellectual figures, such as Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas, O.P. , also Thomas of Aquin or Aquino, was an Italian Dominican priest of the Catholic Church, and an immensely influential philosopher and theologian in the tradition of scholasticism, known as Doctor Angelicus, Doctor Communis, or Doctor Universalis...
. The novel's ending may owe something to the episode "Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling
Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling
Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling is the thirteenth episode of the television series The Prisoner, produced while Patrick McGoohan was in America filming Ice Station Zebra. As a workaround to McGoohan's absence the writers contrived to have Number Six's mind implanted in the body of another man , who...
" from the television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
series The Prisoner
The Prisoner
The Prisoner is a 17-episode British television series first broadcast in the UK from 29 September 1967 to 1 February 1968. Starring and co-created by Patrick McGoohan, it combined spy fiction with elements of science fiction, allegory and psychological drama.The series follows a British former...
, for which Disch wrote a spinoff novel.
Allusions and sources
In addition to the staging of Marlowe's play, the book references the Thomas MannThomas Mann
Thomas Mann was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and 1929 Nobel Prize laureate, known for his series of highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novellas, noted for their insight into the psychology of the artist and the intellectual...
novel Doctor Faustus, which is about a composer named Adrian Leverkühn who intentionally contracts syphilis.
Disch's book mentions a female composer named Adrienne Leverkuhn.
External links
- Scifi.com review (via archive.org) of both Camp Concentration and 334334 (novel)334 is a science fiction novel by American author Thomas M. Disch, written in 1972. It is a dystopian look at everyday life in New York City around the year 2025.-Title:...
, another of Disch's novels.