To Serve Man
Encyclopedia
"To Serve Man" is a science fiction
short story written by Damon Knight
. It first appeared in the November 1950 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction
and has been reprinted a number of times, including in Frontiers in Space (1955), Far Out
(1961) and The Best of Damon Knight (1976). The title is a double entendre
, meaning either "to perform a service for humanity" or "to serve a human as food."
America, and is told in first-person narrative
by a United Nations
translator. The story opens at a special session of the UN where three alien emissaries, the pig-like "Kanamit," are testifying that the purpose of their mission to Earth is "to bring to you the peace and plenty which we ourselves enjoy, and which we have in the past brought to other races throughout the galaxy." The aliens soon supply Earth with cheap unlimited power, a device that suppresses explosions, and drugs for prolonging life. As a further token of friendship, they allow humans to visit their home planet via ten-year "exchange groups."
A friend of the narrator, a UN translator named Gregori, steals one of the Kanamit books, and he and the narrator attempt to translate it, via a basic Kanamit-English dictionary provided by the aliens. After some weeks, they determine that the title is "To Serve Man." Two weeks later, the narrator returns from a trip to find Gregori distraught. Gregori says that he has translated the first paragraph of the book:
of the 1959-64 television series The Twilight Zone
.
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...
short story written by Damon Knight
Damon Knight
Damon Francis Knight was an American science fiction author, editor, critic and fan. His forte was short stories and he is widely acknowledged as having been a master of the genre.-Biography:...
. It first appeared in the November 1950 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction
Galaxy Science Fiction
Galaxy Science Fiction was an American digest-size science fiction magazine, published from 1950 to 1980. It was founded by an Italian company, World Editions, which was looking to break in to the American market. World Editions hired as editor H. L...
and has been reprinted a number of times, including in Frontiers in Space (1955), Far Out
Far Out (book)
Far Out is a collection of 13 science fiction short stories by Damon Knight. The stories were originally published between 1949 and 1960 in Galaxy Magazine, If Science Fiction and other science fiction magazines...
(1961) and The Best of Damon Knight (1976). The title is a double entendre
Double entendre
A double entendre or adianoeta is a figure of speech in which a spoken phrase is devised to be understood in either of two ways. Often the first meaning is straightforward, while the second meaning is less so: often risqué or ironic....
, meaning either "to perform a service for humanity" or "to serve a human as food."
Synopsis
The story is set in what appears to be the present time (i.e., 1950), in cold warCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
America, and is told in first-person narrative
First-person narrative
First-person point of view is a narrative mode where a story is narrated by one character at a time, speaking for and about themselves. First-person narrative may be singular, plural or multiple as well as being an authoritative, reliable or deceptive "voice" and represents point of view in the...
by a United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
translator. The story opens at a special session of the UN where three alien emissaries, the pig-like "Kanamit," are testifying that the purpose of their mission to Earth is "to bring to you the peace and plenty which we ourselves enjoy, and which we have in the past brought to other races throughout the galaxy." The aliens soon supply Earth with cheap unlimited power, a device that suppresses explosions, and drugs for prolonging life. As a further token of friendship, they allow humans to visit their home planet via ten-year "exchange groups."
A friend of the narrator, a UN translator named Gregori, steals one of the Kanamit books, and he and the narrator attempt to translate it, via a basic Kanamit-English dictionary provided by the aliens. After some weeks, they determine that the title is "To Serve Man." Two weeks later, the narrator returns from a trip to find Gregori distraught. Gregori says that he has translated the first paragraph of the book:
"It's a cookbook," he says.
Background
About this story, Knight wrote:"To Serve Man" was written in 1950, when I was living in Greenwich Village and my unhappy first marriage was breaking up. I wrote it in one afternoon, while my wife was out with another man.
Adaptations
Knight's story was adapted for use as an episodeTo Serve Man (The Twilight Zone)
"To Serve Man" is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone.The story is based on the short story "To Serve Man," written by Damon Knight...
of the 1959-64 television series The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)
The Twilight Zone is an American anthology television series created by Rod Serling, which ran for five seasons on CBS from 1959 to 1964. The series consisted of unrelated episodes depicting paranormal, futuristic, dystopian, or simply disturbing events; each show typically featured a surprising...
.