Flesh is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 science fiction

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

Novel

A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....

 written by Philip José Farmer

Philip José Farmer

Philip José Farmer was an American author, principally known for his award-winning science fiction and fantasy novels and short stories....

. Originally released in 1960, it was Farmer's second novel-length publication, after The Green Odyssey

The Green Odyssey

The Green Odyssey is an American science fiction novel written by Philip José Farmer. It was Farmer's first book-length publication, originally released by Ballantine in 1957...

. Flesh features many sexual themes, as is typical of Farmer's earliest work.

Overview

In Flesh, Peter Stagg and a group of astronauts leave Earth in 2100 A.D. Due to the benefits of hypersleep

Stasis (fiction)

Stasis , or hypersleep, is a science fiction concept akin to suspended animation. Whereas suspended animation usually refers to a greatly reduced state of life processes, stasis implies a complete cessation of these processes, which can be easily restarted or restart spontaneously when stasis is...

, they return to the planet eight hundred years later. They find a strange world, inhabited by pagan

Paganism

Paganism is a blanket term, typically used to refer to non-Abrahamic, indigenous polytheistic religious traditions....

 cult

Cult

The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...

ists and bizarre societies decorating a scorched, rocky landscape. Inducted into the mostly female "Elk" group, Stagg has antlers grafted onto his skull and is christened the "Sunhero". As such, he becomes a sexual slave, forced to engage in intercourse with virtually every member of the group, especially virgins. The primary thrust of the book's plot is Stagg's internal dialogue, ruminating on the moral, ethical, spiritual, and physical implications of his actions. However, when he truly falls in love for the first time, the object of his affections refuses to give in to his physical advances.

Reaction and analysis

The book was met with a lukewarm reception by critics. While most enjoyed Farmer's writing style, they often felt that the plot was simply a weak excuse to string together lurid depictions of graphic sex. The revised and expanded edition published eight years after the original release was met with somewhat more praise, largely due to the perceived greater depth of the plot.