The Status Civilization

By Robert Sheckley

THE LIFE EXPECTANCY OF A NEW ARRIVAL ON OMEGA AVERAGED THREE EARTH YEARS Will Barrent could choose--exile on a nightmare planet, or life under the tyranny that had taken over Earth! Barrent had been tried, convicted, and memory-washed on Earth - an Earth strangely altered and stratified by fear of the radical and non-conformist. Now he was serving his sentence on Omega - a prison planet walled by a ring of hovering guard-ships from which there was no escape. Omega was a world of horror, a savage, ruthless way of life. But it was only a momentary ordeal, a prelude to a return to Earth and the subtle terrors of its own status civilization. The Status Civilization first appeared under the title Omega in Amazing Science Fiction Stories. Robert Sheckley was a Hugo- and Nebula-nominated author. His stories first appeared in science fiction magazines of the 1950s.His quick-witted stories and novels were famously unpredictable, absurdist and broadly comical. Sheckley was given the Author Emeritus honor by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2001.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Start Publishing LLC
• Release date: Apr 15, 2013
• ISBN: 9781627930567

Robert Sheckley

Robert Sheckley was one of the funniest writers in the history of science fiction. He did screwball comedy, broad satire, and farce. He could also be deadly serious, but he was always entertaining and always had something pointed to say about our world using the skewed versions of reality he created in his fiction. Starting in the early 1950s, he was an amazingly prolific short story writer, with a lot of his stories appearing in Galaxy Magazine. He launched his novel-writing career with Immortality, Inc., which he followed up with a sequence of excellent books: The Status Civilization, Journey Beyond Tomorrow, and Mindswap. He continued to produce novels and short stories in abundance until his death in 2005.

Reviews for The Status Civilization

[alsocass · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Two vastly different social structures (on two different planets) were packed into this novella.

The first was a prison planet in which inmates had created a world that worshipped evil and status was driven up by authorized kills.

The second was a cold conforming world in which order reigned.

I found both worlds incredibly fascinating. As with so many dystopian worlds I was left with many unanswered questions and a few confusions.

Despite this I found the concepts fresh and I enjoyed the ideas.

[ptdilloway-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Most of this book was a fun read. The parts on Omega, a planet where they worship evil and the biggest crime was not committing a crime are great. It starts to get a little odd when it gets back to Earth.

That is all.

[dinadansfriend · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book is about a massively distopian society where the knowledge of the rules is deliberately withheld. Knowledge is power, and the prison planet Omega is a mirror image of the Earth that condemns criminals to the hell that their crimes merit. Until you come to knowledge of the rules...especially the ones that rule both planets....

[rbeffa_2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book is an odd one. I think it can only be read as social satire, and not subtle about it to my mind. The mandatory worship at the Church of Evil bit laid it on especially thick. The priests are not "father", but "uncle". They call you "nephew" rather than "son". Good exists in the world only because evil needs a contrast ... This is a dark novel that begins with Will Barrent waking up on his way to a prison planet. His memories have been mostly wiped - he doesn't even know his name. They call him "402", his cell/room number, and tell him his name later when they tell him he has been exiled for murder. The first two-thirds of the novel is Will making his way through the society of this prison planet - he has been told that the place is run by the prisoners themselves and he should know that the average person lives only 3 years. He catches some breaks with very close calls, making me wonder how a person could manage even 3 weeks let alone 3 years. We get some glimpses of secondary characters but they weren't quite enough for me to flesh out the "normal" experiences of some of the other prisoners. It is pretty clear that Will Barrent's path is not typical. Barrent doesn't accept his fate - he has a drive to escape and return to earth. He succeeds and the last third of the novel covers his escape and return to earth. The big reveal upon returning is pretty good; not something I would have guessed. I haven't read Sheckley since I was a teenager probably. His "People Trap" really impressed me back then. This book dates to 1968. It was a satisfying read. The cover art of my book is by Jerome Podwill. It is quite interesting and what attracted me to this book.

[carl_alves_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The novel starts off with the protagonist, Will Barrent, arriving on the planet of Omega in complete confusion. He is part of a group of prisoners, and his memories have been completely wiped out. He knows that he has committed a crime but doesn't know what he did. He has been given a life sentence on the prison planet of Omega. The planet is a place of complete chaos where crime and disorder rule. Barrent does what he can to survive, meanwhile non-conforming with the rules of the planet, which make those in charge want him dead. In the process of going through numerous trials where his life is in jeopardy, he becomes part of an underground society in Omega, whose ultimate goal is to get back to Earth.This was a well-conceived and well-written novel. The author does a good job of getting into the head of Barrent, allowing the reader to feel the same confusion that his character must feel under those circumstances. The choices he makes are logical ones. Although he has been convicted of a crime, it is quickly apparent that he was not guilty of his crime. The society and the rules associated with it on Omega were fascinating. There are some comical aspects of the novel as well as good social commentary. The writing was solid and it was not overly long as most science fiction novels are. This was a good novel that I would recommend.Carl Alves - author of Blood Street

[isabelx_21 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The speaker held out his hands to quiet the murmur that ran through the auditorium. He said, "All of you are criminals. And all of you have one thing in common: an inability to obey the basic obligatory rules of human society. Those rules are necessary for civilization to function. By disobeying them, you have committed crimes against all mankind. Therefore mankind rejects you. You are grit in the machinery of civilization, and you have been sent to a world where your own sort is king. Here you can make your own rules, and die by them. Here is the freedom you lusted for; the uncontained and self-destroying freedom of a cancerous growth."On arrival at the prison planet Omega, the memory-wiped prisoners,are told their names and crimes and left to make their way as best they can through the intricacies of the society that has developed among the prisoners who arrived before them. Will Barrent strikes it lucky on his first day on Omega when he survives his first encounter with one of Omega's violent holidays, but his non-conformist ways seem bound to get him into deep trouble sooner or later. I really liked how no-one would tell the newcomers anything they needed to know . . . if they were lucky they would find out before they made a fatal mistake. To start with I found this book a fun read, but in the second half it became more interesting as it gives the reader a lot to think about. The rules and customs of Omega seemed illogical to the reader to start with, as well as to the new arrivals, but gradually the reasons for the warped nature of Omegan society and its relationship with what was happening back on Earth became clear.

[ikeman100 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Somehow in my early years of SF reading I missed all the Sheckley stories. Now that I am doing a personal survey of the Golden years of SF I'm glad I found him. This was a fun read and more. It has stuck with me since. He introduces interesting concepts worth more then a passing thought. What kind of world are we creating and do we have anyone to blame but ourselves? Better then an average three star book. I will read more Sheckley.

[kevinashley_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A satire which examines notions of good and evil, of laws and their absence and the meaning of criminality. And it also looks at conformity and gets the chance to have a dig at the theme-park approach to leisure whilst it's at it.Robert Sheckley was one of the best satirists in SF. This isn't my favourite work of his but the good bits are very good and its an effortless read, as much of his work is.