Lem stanislav - biography. Lem Stanislav: quotes, photo, biography, bibliography, reviews "Man from Mars" and "Astronauts"

Years of life: from 09/12/1921 to 03/27/2006

Polish science fiction writer, satirist, philosopher, futurist. The main themes of creativity: the communication of mankind with extraterrestrial civilizations, the technological future of earthly civilization, an idealistic and utopian society. Lem's works are replete with intellectual humor, puns, all kinds of allusions.

Stanislav Lem was born in the city of Lvov (at that time - the territory of Poland) in a Jewish family of an otolaryngologist Samuil Lem and Sabina Voller. From 1932, he attended the II Men's Gymnasium named after K. S Szajnochy, after graduating from which, in 1939 he received a certificate of secondary education. In 1940-1941. after the occupation of Lvov by Soviet troops, Lem studied medicine at the Lvov Medical Institute. By his own admission, Lem got into the Medical Institute by accident - after he was not accepted into the Polytechnic due to belonging to the "bourgeois class".

Despite their Jewish origin, during the war years, the family managed to avoid deportation to the ghetto thanks to forged documents (all other relatives of Lem died). During the German occupation, Lem worked as an auto mechanic and welder in the garages of a German company engaged in the processing of raw materials, and participated in a Nazi resistance group. In 1944, when the Soviet army liberated the city from the Nazis, Lem continued his studies at the medical institute. In 1946 (after the annexation of Lviv to the USSR), Lem moved to Krakow as part of the repatriation campaign and began to study medicine at the Jagiellonian University (Wydziale Medycznym Uniwersytetu Jagiellonskiego). Lem made the decision to continue his studies largely under the pressure of his father, because. could earn enough while continuing to work as a welder.

After graduation, Stanislav Lem refused to take the final exams, not wanting to become a military doctor. At this time, Lem begins to write stories in order to earn money. Lem's first novel, The Man from Mars (Czlowiek z Marsa), was published in the weekly magazine Nowy Swiat Przygod in 1946. In 1948-1950. he worked as an assistant to Prof. Mechislav Choinovsky in the "Science Circle" (it was a collector of foreign scientific literature). In 1948, Lem began work on the novel "Transfiguration Hospital" ("Szpital Przemieniena"), which did not pass the censors. Lem's first literary success came with the publication of The Astronauts in 1951.

In 1953, the writer married Barbara Lesniak, who worked as a radiologist. On March 14, 1968, their son Tomasz was born.

In the 60-80s, Lem wrote the main works in his work, including "Solaris" (1961), "Invincible" (1964), "Star Diaries" (1957), "Tales of Robots" (1964), " Cyberiad" (1965) and others. Otherwise, in the words of the writer himself, "nothing worthy of attention happened - my wife continued to work as a radiologist, I continued to be an ordinary member of the Writers' Commonwealth ..." At this time, Lem visited East Germany, Prague, Soviet Union.

In 1973, Lem was awarded an honorary membership in the American science fiction writers organization SFWA, from which he was expelled in 1976 for criticizing American science fiction literature, which he called kitsch, accused of poor thought, poor writing style and excessive interest in profits in damage to new ideas and literary forms.

In 1981, Lem received an honorary degree from the Wrocław University of Technology (Polish Politechnika Wrocławska), and later from the University of Opole, Lviv University and the Jagiellonian University. In 1982, after the introduction of martial law in Poland, Stanisław Lem left his homeland in order to attend a course of lectures at the Wissenschaftskolleg. A year later, he moved to Vienna, and returned to his homeland in 1988. In the 90s, Lem mainly wrote futurological forecasts, collaborated with the Catholic weekly Tygodnik Powszechy, with the monthly Odra, with the Polish version of PC Magazine. In 1997, Stanisław Lem became an honorary resident of Krakow. The writer died on March 27, 2006 in Krakow at the age of 84 after a long heart disease.

After Lem's expulsion from the SFWA, a number of members of this organization (including Michael Moorcock and Ursula Le Guin) demanded their "resignation" in protest.

Lem reacted extremely negatively to the adaptation of Solaris by Tarkovsky. Lem repeatedly spoke about this in his interviews: Solaris is a book, because of which we had a great fight with Tarkovsky. I spent six weeks in Moscow while we were arguing about how to make a film, then I called him a fool and went home ... ”(“ Moscow News ”, 06/18/1995). According to Lem, Tarkovsky "made not Solaris at all, but Crime and Punishment".

Stanislav Lem- Polish science fiction writer, genre - science fiction. Stanislav Lem was born on September 12, 1921 in Lviv, in the family of a laryngologist.

(Stanislav Lem was most likely born on September 13, 1921... However, the date of September 12 was recorded on the birth certificate in order to avoid misfortune, in accordance with superstition.

Lem, in a letter to Virgilius Chepaitis dated April 6, 1985, writes that the true date of his birth was most likely September 13, but the previous day was recorded in the birth certificate in order to avoid misfortune in accordance with superstition.)

“I learned to write at the age of four. Really, however, this skill could not be used. The first letter I wrote to my father from Skole, where I traveled with my mother, was a small description of my adventures in a real village toilet. Yes, yes, the same one - with a hole in the wooden floor. Something I didn't mention, though. In this very hole, I threw out a bunch of our master's keys ... ”(“ Stanislav Lem about himself ”) From 1932 he studied at the II Men's Gymnasium. K. S. Szajnochy, in 1939 received a certificate of secondary education.

In 1939-1941 he studied at the Lviv Medical Institute, which he “got into by a roundabout way, because at first he passed the exam for polytechnics, which he considered much more interesting. I passed the exam successfully, but, being a representative of the “wrong social class” (my father is a wealthy laryngologist, that is, a bourgeois), they did not accept me ... My father used his connections and with the help of Professor Parnassus, a well-known biochemist, I was assigned to study medicine, without the slightest enthusiasm with my sides." ("Stanislav Lem about himself"). During the German occupation, Stanisław Lem worked as a mechanic's assistant and as a welder in the garages of a German company that processed raw materials. In 1944, when the Soviet army came to Lvov again, Lem continued his studies at the medical institute. In 1946, Lvov ceased to belong to Poland, and Stanislav, as part of the repatriation campaign, moved to Krakow, where he also began to study medicine. In 1948 he graduated from the medical faculty of the Jagiellonian University in Krakow (Wydziale Medycznym Uniwersytetu Jagiellonskiego). Stanisław Lem received a certificate of completion of his medical education, but refused to take the final exams in order to avoid a career as a military doctor. In 1948-1950 Lem worked as a junior assistant at the Konwersatorium Naukoznawczym.

Since 1946 he began to print. Lem's first novel, The Man from Mars (Czlowiek z Marsa), was published in the weekly magazine Nowy Swiat Przygod. In 1951 Stanisław Lem's first science fiction book, Astronauts (Astronauci), was published. In 1953 Lem married Dr. Barbara Lesniak. “... I met her, I think, in 1950, and after 2 or 3 years of siege, she accepted my offer. At that time, we did not yet have our own housing: I huddled in a tiny room, the walls of which were covered with mold, while my wife, about to complete her medical education, lived with her sister on Sarego Street ... ”(“ Stanislav Lem about himself ”). I traveled to East Germany, to Prague, to the Soviet Union. In 1982, after the introduction of martial law in Poland, Stanislav Lem left his homeland. In 1983 he moved to Vienna. In 1988 he returned to Poland. In the 90s, Lem mainly wrote futurological forecasts, collaborated with the Catholic weekly "Tygodnik Powszechy", with the monthly "Odra", with the Polish version of the PC Magazine.

In 1973, the American Society of Science Fiction Writers of America recognized the literary achievements of Stanislav Lem, but Lem did not stay in the ranks of this Society for long: he was expelled for critical remarks about the low level of American science fiction. After Lem's expulsion, Michael Moorcock and Ursula Le Guin demanded their "resignation" in protest. Stanisław Lem - member of the Polish Writers' Association and Polish Pen-Club, honorary doctor of the Wrocław Polytechnic Institute, member of PAU (Polska Akademia Umiejetnosci; 1994), winner of many national and foreign awards, including the State Prize of Poland (Polish state prizes; 1976), Austrian State Prize (Austrian State Prize for the European Culture; 1986), laureate of the Franz Kafka Prize, Knight of the Order of the White Eagle (The Medal of the White Eagle; 1996), holder of several academic degrees (Warsaw Polytechnic, Opole University, University of Lvov, Jagiellonian University). Since 1972, Stanisław Lem has been a member of the Poland 2000 Committee, acting under the protection of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

Stanisław Lem (1921-2006) is a world-famous Polish writer, science fiction writer, philosopher, futurist and satirist. He was born on September 12, 1921 in the city of Lvov, which was then part of Poland. The father of the future writer, Samuil Lem (1879-1954), worked as an otolaryngologist. Mother - Sabina Voller (1892-1979) was a housewife. The boy learned to read and write at the age of 4. He practiced on his father's medical books, which he constantly reviewed. The child wrote his first "literary work" at the age of 6 during a vacation with his mother in the city of Skole. It was a letter to my father describing local sights.

In 1932 - 1939 the boy studied at the gymnasium in the city of Lvov. Once there was an IQ test for students. Stanislav scored 185 points. After that, he was considered one of the smartest high school students in Poland. Lem wrote an autobiographical novel about his childhood called The High Castle. These are the remains of a medieval fortress and the name of the mountain on which it was located.

This book was first published in 1966. It contained not only a detailed description of childhood, but also touched upon philosophical issues related to the formation and development of the individual. The mechanism of memory was discussed and an attempt was made to investigate the phenomenon of the creative process.

From 1939 to 1941, the young man studied at the Medical Institute until the occupation of Lviv by the Germans. During the occupation, with the help of forged documents, the Lem family managed to avoid deportation to the Jewish ghetto. The family remained in Lvov. During the day, the young man worked as an auto mechanic in the garage, and after work he went to a meeting of the cell, which was part of the resistance group against the fascist invaders.

The Soviet army liberated Lvov in 1944, and the future writer continued his studies at the Medical Institute. When the city officially seceded from Poland, the young man left it as part of the repatriation program. He settled in Krakow, where he continued to study medicine at a local institution of higher education.

It happened in 1946. And in the same year, Stanislav Lem made his debut as a writer. The magazine "New World of Adventures" published his short story "The Man from Mars". Then came the turn of poems and stories. They have been published in periodicals. These are "Universal Weekly", "Polish Soldier", "Forge", etc.

In 1948, the young man graduated from a higher educational institution, but received not a diploma, but a certificate of medical education. This happened because Stanislav refused to take his final exams in order to evade a career as a military doctor.

In 1947-1950, the future famous writer worked as a junior assistant in a medical laboratory and at the same time worked closely with the Life of Science magazine.

In 1950 he met Barbara Lesniak. In 1953 she became his wife. The woman had a medical education and worked as a radiologist. In 1968, the couple had a son. He was given the name Tomas. He is currently a translator and writes memoirs.

In 1951 Lem had his first literary success with the publication of the science fiction novel The Astronauts. Since that time, Stanislav actively began to write. His books can be roughly divided into two categories:

1. Novels and short stories written in the genre of science fiction:
"Eden" (1959);
"Solaris" (1961);
"Return from the Stars" (1961);
"Invincible" (1964);
"Tales of Pilot Pirks" (1968);
The Voice of the Lord (1968) and many others.

2. Grotesque works filled with sparkling lively humor:
Star Diaries (1957);
"Manuscript found in the bath" (1961);
Robot Tales (1964);
Cyberiad (1965);
"Inspection on the spot" (1982);
"Peace on Earth" (1987), etc.

In 1964, a collection of philosophical and futurological essays, The Sum of Technology, saw the light of day. In this work, Stanislav Lem predicted the emergence of virtual reality, artificial intelligence and nanotechnology. In his book, the writer outlined the idea of creating artificial worlds, the evolution of mankind and other philosophical topics that are inextricably linked with human civilization.

In 1973, Stanislaw Lem was elected an honorary member of the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA). But after 3 years he was expelled, as the Polish writer criticized the level of American science fiction literature. However, part of the SFWA members did not agree with this decision and organized a protest against the expulsion. Then the Association offered Stanislav regular membership, but he refused.

The famous writer traveled a lot around the world. He visited the Soviet Union, the GDR, Czechoslovakia. From 1983 to 1988 he lived permanently in Vienna. In the 1990s, he collaborated with the Polish version of the PC Magazine, the monthly Odra, and a number of other periodicals. Lem made several futurological predictions in the field of culture and technology. Some of these predictions turned out to be correct.

The Polish writer's books have been translated into 41 foreign languages. Some of the novels have been filmed. And the total circulation of books sold in the world amounted to more than 30 million copies. Stanisław Lem received several international and Polish orders and academic degrees. An asteroid (3836) was named after the famous science fiction writer. It was discovered in 1979 by astronomer Nikolai Chernykh.

On March 27, 2006, at the age of 85, the famous writer died. The cause of death was heart disease. The body was buried at the Salvatore Cemetery in the city of Krakow.

Alexey Starikov

Biography (http://stanislawlem.ru/abio.shtml)

Norbert Wiener began his autobiography with the words: "I was a miracle child." Perhaps, to myself, I could say: "I was a monster." Perhaps this is an exaggeration, but when I was still very young, I managed to terrorize absolutely everyone around me. Let's say I agreed to do what I was told only if my father climbed into a chair and began to alternately open and close the umbrella, but I allowed myself to feed only under the table. I don't really remember this; for it is only the beginning, lying somewhere beyond memory. Apparently, only numerous aunts considered me a nice guy.

At the age of four I learned to write. Really, however, this skill could not be used. The first letter I wrote to my father from Skole, where I traveled with my mother, was a small description of my adventures in a real village toilet. Yes, yes, the same one - with a hole in the wooden floor. Something I didn't mention, though. In this very hole, I threw a bunch of our master's keys ...

Stanislav Lem was born on September 12th in Lvov. In the family of a laryngologist. From 1932, he attended the II Men's Gymnasium named after K. S Szajnochy, after graduating from which, in 1939 he received a certificate of secondary education. In 1940-1941. after the occupation of Lvov by Soviet troops, Lem studied medicine at the Lvov Med. Institute...

I got there by a roundabout way, because at first I took an exam for a polytechnic, which I considered much more interesting. I passed the exam successfully, but, being a representative of the "wrong social class" (my father is a wealthy laryngologist, that is, a bourgeois), they did not accept me ... My father used his connections and with the help of Professor Parnassus, a famous biochemist, I was assigned to study medicine, without the slightest enthusiasm from my side.

During the German occupation, Lem worked as a mechanic's assistant and as a welder in the garages of a German raw material processing company. In 1944, when the Soviet army re-occupied the city, Lem continued his studies at the medical institute. In 1946, Lvov ceased to belong to Poland, Stanislav moved to Krakow as part of the repatriation campaign, where he began to study medicine at the Wydziale Medycznym Uniwersytetu Jagiellonskiego.

I could earn quite a lot by working as a welder. On the one hand, it looked quite attractive, because we had to start from scratch in Krakow. On the other hand, even the thought that I could drop out of school greatly upset my father. For some time I could not make a choice, but in the end I decided to continue my medical education.

Between 1948 and 1950, Lem worked as a junior assistant at the Konwersatorium Naukoznawczym, headed by Micheslav Chojnowski.

Acquaintance with Choinovsky was a turning point in my life. It greatly influenced my general and intellectual development.

Stanisław Lem received a certificate of completion of his medical education, but refused to take the final exams in order to avoid a career as a military doctor. ... The army took all my friends, and not for a year or two, they stayed there forever ...

Lem's first novel "The Man from Mars" ("Czlowiek z Marsa") in the weekly magazine "Nowy Swiat Przygod". Stanisław's poems and stories were published in "Tygodnik Powszechny", "Zolniez Polski", "Kuznica" and other periodicals. In 1948, Lem began work on the novel "Transfiguration Hospital" ("Szpital Przemieniena"), which was not allowed by the communist censors. The novella was published only eight years later.

Every few weeks I traveled by night train to Warsaw. I took the cheapest tickets, because I was then too poor. There, in Warsaw, I had endless discussions at the Ksiazka i Wiedza publishing house. These guys subjected my Transfiguration Hospital to monstrous tortures, the number of critical reviews grew by leaps and bounds, and in each of them the novel was called decadent and counter-revolutionary. I was told what and how to remake... The hope that the novel would still be published continued to smolder, so I diligently wrote and remade... future additional episodes to achieve "compositional balance." In 1951, Lem's first science fiction book, Astronauts (Astronauci), was published.

In 1950, at the House of the Writers' Society in Zakopane, I met a fat gentleman. Once with this same gentleman, who, as I later learned, turned out to be none other than Gerzy Pansky, from the publishing house "Czytelnik"; we went for a walk in Czarny Staw. During our walk, we discussed the problem of the almost complete absence of Polish science fiction... Panski asked if I could write a book in the aforementioned genre. I, not even suspecting who Zherzi really is, answered: "yes." It seemed to me that he was the most ordinary fat guy who, like me, accidentally stopped at the Astoria. After a while, a damn interesting surprise awaited me - a letter from "Czytelnik" came with an author's proposal. Without even knowing what my book would be about, I wrote the title: "Astronauts" and in the shortest possible time wrote my first book, which was published without delay.

In 1953, Lem married Dr. Barbara Lesniak.

I met her, I think, in 1950, and after 2 or 3 years of siege, she accepted my proposal. At that time, we did not yet have our own housing: I huddled in a tiny room, the walls of which were covered with mold, while my wife, about to complete her medical education, lived with her sister on Sarego Street ...

Lem's science fiction novels have made him one of the greatest writers in the field. They can be divided into two categories: "Eden" (1959), "Return from the Stars" (1961), "Solaris" (1961), "Invincible" (1964), "The Voice of the Lord" (1968), "Tales of Pilot Pirks "(1968) - serious short stories written according to the traditions of the genre, which Lem himself expanded and improved qualitatively. The second group - "Star Diaries" (1957), "Manuscript found in the bath" (1961), "Tales of Robots" (1964), "Cyberiad" (1965), "Inspection on the spot" (1982), "Peace on Earth "(1987) - consists of grotesque works filled with lively sparkling humor. Their style is often similar to traditional literary forms such as fables, memoirs or philosophical stories:

In these politically uninteresting times... we killed one month of the year skiing in Zakopane. I also went there in June, because of hay fever, against which there were no medicines in those days. I stayed at the House of the Writers' Fellowship and worked all day long. During one of these marathons, he wrote Solaris. I have applied a similar method to several other books. Apart from this, nothing worthy of attention happened - my wife continued to work as a radiologist, I continued to remain an ordinary member of the Writers' Commonwealth ... I still remember my trip with a delegation of Polish writers to East Germany, as well as trips to Prague and the Soviet Union. I was loved there...

Among all Lem's essays, the "Sum of Technology" occupies the leading role, leaving behind the cybernetic "Dialogues", "Science Fiction and Futurology" and "Filolozofia Przypadku" (an attempt to create a "general theory of everything"). These works are certainly no less interesting, but The Summa deals with issues that are even more relevant today than they were when the book was first written. Many of Pan Lem's predictions in the field of culture and technology miraculously turned out to be absolutely accurate...

In 1973, the American Science Fiction Society recognized Pan Lem's literary achievements and he received an offer to join the club. Nevertheless, Stanislav was quickly expelled from there due to critical statements about the low level of American SF. (The amusing stance of the members of Science Fiction Writers of America is once again admirable. Accepted for literary merit, expelled for criticism. Perhaps we will have the opportunity to talk in detail about this amusing fact. Discuss the peculiar demarche of some sane members of the club. After Lem's expulsion, something -who demanded his "resignation" in protest. I think it makes no sense to introduce Michael Moorcock and Ursula Le Guin ... - translator's note)

In 1982, after the introduction of martial law in Poland, Stanisław Lem left his homeland in order to attend a course of lectures at the Wissenschaftskolleg. A year later, he moved to Vienna. While living abroad, Lem wrote his last two science fiction books, Peace on Earth and Fiasco. The writer returned to Poland in 1988.

In the 90s, Lem mainly wrote futurological forecasts. He collaborated with the Catholic weekly "Tygodnik Powszechy" (the articles "The World According to Lem" were published in the book "Dziury w calym"), with the monthly "Odra", with the Polish version of the PC Magazine (the articles were published in two books: "Tajemnica chinskiego pokoju" and "Bomba megabitowa"). Lem's last book is "Okamgnienie".

Stanisław Lem is a member of the Polish Writers' Association and the Polish Pen-Club. Since 2000, Lem has been a member of the "Poland 2000" Committee, acting under the protection of the Polish Academy of Sciences. In 1994 he became a member of the PAU (Polska Akademia Umiejetnosci).

The writer received several Polish and international literary awards (Polish state prizes, Austrian State Prize for the European Culture), orders (The Medal of the White Eagle) and academic degrees (Warsaw Polytechnic, Opole University, University of Lvov, Jagiellonian University).

Biography (Vladimir Pavliv, IA Rosbalt, Warsaw. http://www.rosbalt.ru/)

One of the novelties on the Polish book market was a collection of essays by the world-famous Polish science fiction writer Stanisław Lem - "DiLEMS". Fans of the author of Solaris, who are looking forward to every new word of their favorite writer, after reading the very first lines, will find out that: “Everyone, in America and Europe, is scratching their heads over Putin’s political intentions, because nothing is known about them .. He has no political or economic program! Yes, but he has behind him the Russians united by elections and sentiments. It doesn't fill me with anxiety." And further: “We know about his work as a KGB resident in the German Democratic Republic; it was a very interesting place where you could learn everything except what democracy is.”

Stop stop... Is this from the realm of fantasy? This is where we need to stop and see what exactly we are reading. And we are reading the essay “Anxiety” written in 2000 from the cycle “Political Castling”, which, in fact, opens the book.

At this point, a significant question arises (which, however, was put on the cover by the publisher): “Who is contacting us at DiLEMa - a pessimist or a rationalist? A biased commentator and participant in reality, or just a skeptical spectator in theatrum mundi? What affects and dislikes does the author speak to the readers about? With what thoughts does he wake up in the middle of the night?

Let me add one more question, but this time to the publisher: “Why does the book begin with a text that is rather irrelevant, given the development of events on the international political scene? After all, in "Political Castling" you can find quotes indicating that Stanislav Lem's opinion about the Russian president has changed over time. Already in the article “Theater of the World” we read: “Now there is a game between the West and Russia, and President Putin is, as it were, in a split. Russia has turned from a rocket-nuclear bucephalus into a pony, and, according to the ambitions of the Russian generals, it must restore its imperial status, and according to the president, who turned out to be a sober man, the most important thing is the economy and rapprochement with the West, especially with America.

Although the Polish science fiction writer also has no particular illusions about the rapprochement between Russia and America, as he writes in the text “A Terrible Lesson” about the consequences of the terrorist attack on the WTC in New York: “Officially, Putin was very sympathetic to the Americans, but I think that the Kremlin quietly danced little "cossack".

Stanislav Lem explains his “alarms” related to the fact that President Putin is “putting things in order” in Russia and bringing it closer to the West with a straightforwardness worthy of a “living classic”: “It will sound ugly, but the chaos in Russia was more useful for us than trying to manage this country more skillfully." In principle, what Stanisław Lem writes about here largely reflects what the majority of Polish politicians are bashfully silent about. After all, we are talking about the same "Polish fears" - phobias that still live in the minds of a significant part of both society and the elite.

After the “polonophilism” of the German Chancellor Kohl, the Poles observe with anxiety and jealousy the “Russophilism” of Chancellor Schroeder. Dreaming all the time to regain influence in the former territories of the Commonwealth - in Ukraine and Belarus - they bitterly note that they cannot win this competition with Russia. Therefore, in fact, the more realistic question is: "Who is able to make friends with Poland's northeastern neighbor?". And Stanisław Lem also gives a frank answer to this question, which largely explains why the overwhelming majority of voters voted for the Social Democrat Aleksander Kwasniewski in the last presidential election in 2000, although the left itself does not have such an advantage.

Not noticed in sympathy for the left, Stanislav Lem wrote before those elections: “I’m afraid that I will vote for him, because I don’t see a better candidate: together with all his undoubted vices and shortcomings, it can be easier for him - on behalf of Poland it’s clear and in her interests - to find a common language, maybe even not so much with Putin, but with his team, which he is putting on its feet for now, because it is known that it will consist of people selected from the KGB reserves.

It makes no sense in a short article to quote everything that Lem said about Putin and Russia, especially since DiLEMS as a whole is not a book about this. "Political castling" takes up only a small part of the book. In the rest of the texts, we already meet the same Lem whom we know from his books from the field of popular science fiction and science. If you read the ENTIRE book, then you understand that in fact Russia and Putin are far from the first place in the “alarms” of the famous science fiction writer.

Biography

Stanislav Lem was born on September 12, 1921 in the city of Lviv in Poland (now Lviv is part of Ukraine) in the family of an otolaryngologist respected in the city.

He was studying medicine at Lviv University when World War II began. Despite their Jewish origin during the war years, the family managed to avoid deportation to the ghetto thanks to forged documents. During the Nazi occupation, Lem worked as an auto mechanic and welder, participating in a Nazi resistance group. In 1946, Lem immigrated from the territory that became part of the USSR to Krakow and began to study medicine at the Jagiellonian University (Uniwersytet Jagiellonski).

After graduation, Stanislav Lem refused to take the final exams, not wanting to become a military doctor, and received only a certificate of completion of the course. He worked as an assistant at a research institute and began writing short stories in his spare time to earn extra money during the difficult postwar period. For the first time, his works were published in 1946. Later, this hobby grew into Lem's main occupation.

In 1973, Lem was awarded an honorary membership in the American science fiction writers organization SFWA (the founder of the Nebula Prize), from which he was expelled in 1976 for criticizing American science fiction literature, which he called kitsch, accused of poor thoughtfulness, poor style writing and an excessive interest in profit at the expense of new ideas and literary forms. The SFWA later offered him regular membership, which was rejected by him. After Lem's exclusion, Michael Moorcock and Ursula Le Guin demanded their "resignation" in protest.

He was married to Barbara Lesniak, they had a son Lukash.

In 1977, Stanisław Lem became an honorary resident of Krakow.

In 1981, Lem received an honorary degree from the Wroclaw University of Technology (Politechnika Wroclawska), and later from the University of Opole, Lviv University and the Jagiellonian University.

The main idea of creativity

Stanislav Lem wrote mainly about the impossibility of human communication with extraterrestrial civilizations far from people, as well as about the technological future of earthly civilization. His later works are also devoted to an idealistic and utopian society and the problems of human existence in a world in which there is nothing to do due to technological development. His communities of extraterrestrial worlds include swarms of mechanical insects ("Invincible"), a sentient ocean ("Solaris"), and others. The problems of technological utopia are considered in "Peace on Earth", "Inspection on the spot" and a little in "Cyberiad".

Bibliography

Major works

* "Man from Mars" (Czlowiek z Marsa; 1947, published in Russian in 1997)

* Star Diaries (Dzienniki gwiazdowe; 1953-1999)

* "Unlost Time" (Czas nieutracony; 1955)
* "Dialogues" (Dialogi; 1957)

* "Return from the Stars" (Powrut z gwiazd; 1961, published in Russian in 1965)
* Diary Found in a Bath, also Manuscript Found in a Bath (Pamietnik znaleziony w wannie; 1961)

* "Entering into orbit" (Wejscie na orbite; 1962)

* "Tales of robots" (Bajki robotуw; 1964)

* "Hunting" (Polowanie; 1965)

* "Absolute Vacuum" (Doskonala Pruznia; 1971)

* Runny nose (Katar; 1975)
* "Hospital of Transfiguration" (Szpital przemienienia; 1982, published in Russian in 1995)
* "Inspection on the spot" (Wizja lokalna)
* "Fiasco" (Fiasco; 1986)
* "Peace on earth" (Pokuj na Ziemi; 1987)

Screen versions of works

* "The Silent Star" (Der Schweigende Stern, 1959, dir. Kurt Metzig) - based on the novel "The Astronauts"
* Layer Cake (Przekladaniec (TV), 1968, dir. Andrzej Wajda)
* "Solaris" (1968, USSR, teleplay, dir. B. Nirenburg)
* Solaris (1972, USSR, dir. Andrei Tarkovsky)
* "Inquiry of the pilot Pirks" (Test pilota Pirxa, 1978, dir. Marek Piestrak) - based on the story "Inquest"
* "Hospital of the Transfiguration" (Szpital przemienienia, 1979, dir. Edward Zebrowski)
* Solaris (Solaris, 2002, USA, dir. Steven Soderbergh (1961)
* Iyon Quiet: Space pilot. (Ijon Tichy: Raumpilot) Series, Germany (2007).

I wanted to ask you a question, does life have a meaning, but it is so broad or so banal that I will ask you differently: what is the future of life?
- If you ask about the future of mankind, then, thinking about it, I always feel uneasy. We are heading straight for a nuclear conflict. However, I don't know when the final clash will take place - if I knew, I would probably be sitting in an armored safe with the American president right now.
- This is a terrible forecast.
- Terrible, but confirmed by the facts. One need only look at this fragment of the political landscape: as soon as Tehran announced that it wanted to continue its nuclear program, Israeli politician Benjamin Netanyahu came up with a plan to bomb Iranian nuclear centers, and in response, Tehran bought medium and short-range missiles from the Russians, which should be used in the event of a possible attack. Such tension does not promise a lasting peace.
- Do you think that the United States can lose control of all this?
- But the United States, as Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin said, is a giant without a head. You see, President Bush has such a feature that he is stupid. This is evidenced at least by the fact that he opposed the theory of evolution in favor of the so-called intelligent design (intelligent design - approx. Per.), The essence of which is that it is not known what it is. His entire administration is pushing this idiotic theory, but they just don't have the brains.
- The idea of a reasonable project, which consists, in particular, that God intervenes in the process of evolution, is rejected by scientists, but not by right-wing politicians. After all, Bush, when making decisions, seems to be consulting with the Creator himself.
- Well, why is it so, because not all rightists are stupid. For example, English conservatives are not idiots at all.
- And what about the Polish rightists, who have just come to power?
- What is there to talk about if Poland is a backwater of civilization, which in fact has no weight in the world? No one cares that we have some Kachors I recently read in "Przeglad" your interview with director Andrzej Zulawski, who called everything by its proper name: the era of Rydzyk has arrived (1). Neither add nor add. I always thought that twins are more intelligent. Meanwhile, an attempt to solve the problems of Poland by tightening the criminal code is, unfortunately, the games and amusements of little Yas: give me a big stick and everything will fall into place with me. And it's not worth talking about.
- Maybe not, but I see that it still causes emotions in you.
- Of course, negative. Because when someone says that three times seven is forty, it's hard to sit still. If I were thirty years younger, I would again want to leave Poland. Only nowhere.
- ?
- Yes, everywhere is unpleasant. Switzerland is boring, the United States is stupid. . .
- However, I will insist that we need to say a few words about Poland. What else do you not like here?
- The fact that they tell me that I have three legs, while I have two of them. For example, what did the joint invasion of Iraq with the United States give us? A donut hole. Why should we continue to keep our troops there? Or payments to young mothers? I share the opinion that if a woman decides to give birth to a child only for the sake of money, then she should be deprived of parental rights, because she has no mind. For a thousand zlotys (approx. $ 300 - approx. Lane), the husband of this woman will get drunk a couple of times, and you will not raise a child on this money.
- What do you think about lustration? "Deal with the past" is inscribed on the banners of the Kaczynskis.
- It's pointless, because you need to look to the future, not to the past. Today, Mrozek (2), who was tormented by the Security Service and left the country, is said to have mocked Poland. What nonsense! All our digging into history is that if one idiot says something, then forty philosophers will not be able to cope with it later. Today we face other challenges. And these hordes of mohair berets (3) will not help us at all if some Arabs want to plant a bomb in the Warsaw metro. Some time ago, an experiment was carried out, the purpose of which was to test the vigilance of Polish society in the event of a terrorist act: a bundle was planted in a public place. So what? Did someone tell the police? No, because some of our compatriots simply stole it. Such is the state of our civic consciousness. And we need to work on this, and not on the past, which no longer exists and will not exist.
- Do you think that we are not ready for the threats that the modern world brings?
- And what, a politician will win the election if he sells people a sense of threat, even if it is completely real? Politicians prefer to tell fairy tales. And the government should not be concerned with what privileges are due to Father Rydzyk or how to convince Lepper (4), but with the creation of a long-term program, say, for the hydrogenation of coal, which would make our economy much more efficient.
- Now you are selling some kind of utopia. After all, we don’t have a decent highway, what can we say about complex technologies that require billions of dollars in expenses!
- Well, it really smells like a terrible utopia; even in Slovakia the roads are better. You know, if you don't roll up your sleeves and start doing something, then everything will end in chatter. And the world is really moving towards the abyss. The Iraqi question is launched. Syria is also not particularly clean. Tehran will certainly not be afraid of the UN Security Council. I really think that it doesn't matter who is the president of Poland. It matters who is the President of America. Every day, dozens of people die in Iraq, and this idiot says things are getting better. Well, what to do with such a person?
- Maybe impeachment?
- There are no constitutional grounds for this. And even if some nefarious Arab hits him, we have a Vice President Cheney who is no better than Bush. It is because of such people that the state of the world is getting worse.
- I see, you remained with your opinion expressed in conversations with Stanislaw Beres - that the world is ruled by idiots or madmen?
- Isn't it so? Yesterday Lepper says: Balcerowicz (5) should resign, today: Balcerowicz should stay, and the next day the leader of the "Self-Defense" says that Balcerowicz should work in the quarries. So what? Although Lepper does not have any political program, people vote for him and he gets the third place in the elections. Moreover, by some miracle he manages to attract even university professors. And then Kachinsky gives him the opportunity to be elected vice-marshal of the Sejm. But after all, everyone who still has hair on his head, looking at all this, should pull it out! Fortunately, I no longer have.
- Only here it will be even worse, because, in fact, nothing has begun yet?
- Yes, it will really start after December 23, when Kaczynski officially takes office as president. Although he is already receiving guests, because, as Condoleezza Rice arrived, he was the first to run to kiss her hand.
- Well, friendship with America is very important for us. . .
- What should we do? Friendship with Putin is out of the question, because he does not love us, and not only for the Orange Revolution, which, by the way, did not change much. I am talking not only about political conflicts, but about the living conditions of people. My friend, the writer Radek Knapp, who lives in Austria, was invited to Lvov and, upon returning, told me with horror that there is water there for three hours a day, the pavements have not been repaired since 1939. For me, this is especially painful , because I'm from Lviv.
- Do you see any chances for Poland in the European Union?
- Do you think it is possible, like Roma Gertykh (6), to simultaneously be an opponent of the EU and wait for EU money? Why should they help us? Because they don't like it? In fact, this is a very difficult question, because we harm ourselves with some amazing passion. When I read Western newspapers, which I do regularly, I don't find there any particular interest in Poland. In fact, they don’t give a damn about us, but if they do write, then most often it’s bad. One day we will regret this. And about many other things.
- What, for example?
- For example, about how we treated Alexander Kwasniewski. Those who spit on him today will one day be convinced that they were wrong. Of course, he was not an angel, but he knew languages, represented us with dignity, and performed his duties properly.
- However, those who attack Kwasniewski today want to go further: do they dream of summoning him to the Supreme Court?
- This is a typical Polish little hell: when someone wants to be better than others, they immediately put him back into the cauldron. Now Poland "B" (7) chose Kaczynski, but, on the other hand, Tusk was not a savior either. This, in my opinion, is the main problem of Polish politics: we have no decent parties, no one to vote for.
- Did you vote this year?
- Yes, my wife ordered (laughs). All of Krakow voted for Tusk, so it's not surprising that Kaczynski's posters were labeled "Duck Flu". But, you know, on the other hand, I do not believe in the stories that these twins are demons that will entangle all of Poland with their tentacles. Their time will pass, although they may have time to spoil the economy. When I hear the ideas of Mrs. Lubinska (Lubinska) (8), I clutch my head. Or Lepper, who wants to print more money.
- Why do you think, after 16 years of so-called. freedom elections win, what is there to hide, obscurantists?
- One hundred and sixty years - it's not enough that there are sixteen. The only thing we can rejoice in is the freedom of the press and the absence of the institution of censorship. Everything else looks the way it looks. For example, the intellectuals, who have weight in today's Poland, can be placed in this room, in which we are now talking. Here's another - we have one significant literary award for everyone. If someone writes an interesting book about philately, then he, too, can apply for Nike. After all, this is not normal.
- What about Polish science?
- (laughter) What is there! We do not have a single Nobel in the field of science, so what is there to talk about? Today in Poland everyone can become a professor, we have a lot of professors, but this frightening quantity does not want to turn into quality. My son studied physics at Princeton University and has a Ph.D. Returned to Poland. And what is he to do here? Hands to catch atoms?
- And one more Polish sin: anti-Semitism. I am surprised that the Polish government appreciates the radio station, on the waves of which anti-Semite talk is a common thing.
Well, anti-Semitism is deeply rooted in the public mind. This is well illustrated by one of Mrozhek's stories: some shots are heard, someone asks: "What is happening here?" and hears in response: "Nothing like that, some Jews are being shot at." Anti-Semitism is based on a simple scheme: they are worse than me. And those who are worse can be anyone: a communist, a freemason, a gay. This does not affect the Polish mentality in any way. But not only that. We do not want to fight with thoughts, we are not interested in the mind. We should go to church on Sunday, and immediately forget about everything after mass. It's safer that way.
- Have you noticed that we are terribly fond of complaining? I keep hearing that complaining is terribly unpopular these days.
- And what to do if there is nothing good in Poland except beautiful girls. They may not always be smart, but at least they look good. That's something, don't you think?
- Totally agree with you.
- Nothing surprising, you are still young, and I do not hide the fact that this is also a joy for me, although I already have nothing from this. But seriously. . . I have already gone through so many political systems that I can complain as much as I want, especially since I do not find what I have experienced particularly inspiring: the Soviets, the German occupation, then the Soviets again, then the PPR, and now - who knows what. At the beginning of this conversation, you wanted to ask me about the meaning of life, but you avoided this question. And I will gladly answer: it all depends on where and when you live. My wife and I are often surprised that we survived all this, and somehow it turned out. But it worked out.
- Do you see any hope?
- For peace? Pathetic prospects. How can one effectively combat, for example, growing terrorism, when in this case even the threat of the death penalty is ineffective? After all, they are just waiting to die. So, as I said at the beginning: slowly but irreversibly we are moving towards a nuclear conflict. And this is not a discovery, but evidence.
- And for Poland?
“Now we are in a rut. But only for four years. Then the people, like a horse with a cactus under its tail, will begin to kick, and there will be no trace of the twins. They will simply drown in this sea of impossible promises.
- I meant hope for a longer period.
- Ah, for a start, the Mother of God would have to appear to avert this sad fate from us. Unfortunately, I don't have much hope for it. The Poles, as Norwid (9) said, are a magnificent people and a worthless society. If you look at history, this has been going on for many years. Poets throwing themselves at bayonets are always welcome, but being a moderately honest person and not doing anything particularly sublime is already a problem. If you want to live happily in Poland, then you need to have money and a copper forehead. Otherwise, nothing will come of it.
- In one Woody Allen film, there is this motif: the main character makes a television film about an outstanding gray-haired scientist who passionately talks about everything he has experienced in life, but suddenly, when the film is already shot, commits suicide, which is amazing everyone. Don't you think that knowledge of this world can discourage life?
- Maybe. But my personal opinion is this: in the endless starry void, there is suddenly a tiny, just a microscopic glimpse of consciousness - mine or yours, an ant or some bird - and then, when life ends, it goes out, and this infinite nothingness continues. It seems to me that this consciousness should shine. But in May next year, a new dad will arrive and will probably tell us something more interesting about it.

Biography

Polish science fiction writer, genre - science fiction. Stanislav Lem was born on September 12, 1921 in Lviv, in the family of a laryngologist. "At the age of four, I learned to write. Really, however, I could not use this skill. The first letter that I wrote to my father from Skole, where I went with my mother, was a small description of my adventures in a real village toilet. Yes, yes, that I myself - with a hole in the wooden floor. True, I did not mention something. I threw a bunch of our master's keys into this very hole ... "("Stanislav Lem about himself") From 1932 he studied at the II Men's Gymnasium. K.S. Szajnochy, in 1939 received a certificate of secondary education.

In 1939-1941 he studied at the Lviv Medical Institute, which he "got into by a roundabout way, because at first he passed the exam for polytechnics, which he considered much more interesting. He passed the exam successfully, but, being a representative of the" wrong social class "(his father is a wealthy laryngologist, that is, the bourgeoisie) did not accept me ... My father used his connections and with the help of Professor Parnassus, a well-known biochemist, I was assigned to study medicine, without the slightest enthusiasm on my part. ("Stanislav Lem about himself"). During the German occupation, Stanisław Lem worked as a mechanic's assistant and as a welder in the garages of a German company that processed raw materials. In 1944, when the Soviet army came to Lvov again, Lem continued his studies at the medical institute. In 1946, Lvov ceased to belong to Poland, and Stanislav, as part of the repatriation campaign, moved to Krakow, where he also began to study medicine. In 1948 he graduated from the medical faculty of the Jagiellonian University in Krakow (Wydziale Medycznym Uniwersytetu Jagiellonskiego). Stanisław Lem received a certificate of completion of his medical education, but refused to take the final exams in order to avoid a career as a military doctor. In 1948-1950 Lem worked as a junior assistant at the Konwersatorium Naukoznawczym.

Since 1946 he began to print. Lem's first novel, The Man from Mars (Czlowiek z Marsa), was published in the weekly magazine Nowy Swiat Przygod. In 1951 Stanisław Lem's first science fiction book, Astronauts (Astronauci), was published. In 1953 Lem married Dr. Barbara Lesniak. "... I met her, it seems, in 1950, and after 2 or 3 years of siege, she accepted my proposal. We didn't have our own housing then: I huddled in a tiny room, the walls of which were covered with mold, while the wife, about to finish her medical education, lived with her sister on Sarego Street ... "("Stanislav Lem about himself"). I traveled to East Germany, to Prague, to the Soviet Union. In 1982, after the introduction of martial law in Poland, Stanislav Lem left his homeland. In 1983 he moved to Vienna. In 1988 he returned to Poland. In the 90s, Lem mainly wrote futurological forecasts, collaborated with the Catholic weekly "Tygodnik Powszechy", with the monthly "Odra", with the Polish version of the PC Magazine.

In 1973, the American Society of Science Fiction Writers of America recognized the literary achievements of Stanislav Lem, but Lem did not stay in the ranks of this Society for long: he was expelled for critical remarks about the low level of American science fiction. After Lem's exclusion, Michael Moorcock and Ursula Le Guin demanded their "resignation" in protest. Stanisław Lem - member of the Polish Writers' Association and Polish Pen-Club, honorary doctor of the Wrocław Polytechnic Institute, member of PAU (Polska Akademia Umiejetnosci; 1994), winner of many national and foreign awards, including the State Prize of Poland (Polish state prizes; 1976), Austrian State Prize (Austrian State Prize for the European Culture; 1986), laureate of the Franz Kafka Prize, Knight of the Order of the White Eagle (The Medal of the White Eagle; 1996), holder of several academic degrees (Warsaw Polytechnic, Opole University, University of Lvov, Jagiellonian University). Since 2000, Stanisław Lem has been a member of the Poland 2000 Committee, acting under the patronage of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

Biography

Lem achieved worldwide fame as a science fiction writer, and is regarded by many as a modern classic. But in the end, Lem's prose is more of a philosophy taught to the reader in artistic images. It floods the hidden corners of human civilization with a mercilessly bright and cold light of reason. Everything is questioned, down to the simplest and most established truths. Lem's main "enemy" is mental laziness, unwillingness to think about the essence of things and the laws that govern the universe. Another serious adversary is mental pride: we know a lot, so we know everything! - Well, isn't that a ridiculous prejudice?

Perhaps this view of the world was facilitated by the education received by the writer. Before the outbreak of World War II, he studied at the Lviv Medical Institute, and completed his studies at the famous Jagiellonian University (Krakow) in the post-war years. Subsequently, he was a practicing physician for some time. And in literature, he showed a "medical" approach: Dr. Lem dispassionately diagnoses any phenomenon, any idea, and then performs an "autopsy" with the firmness of a pathologist.

This writer glorified Poland. But there is a little "Polishness" in his works. To a much greater extent, Lem is a "citizen of the world." During the Second World War, he survived several years of fascist occupation, almost ended up in the ghetto, and participated in the resistance to the invaders.

In 1980, he left Poland for almost ten years and traveled around Europe to his heart's content, perceiving it as his "great homeland". Meanwhile, the Poles were rigidly divided into supporters and opponents of the communist regime. A pre-war mood reigned in the country, it was expected that Soviet troops would enter the country's territory. He returned to another Poland: communism in this state was losing its last positions.

In the 1940s, his first science fiction stories and novellas were published. Since the 1950s, Stanisław Lem has been a professional writer who has retired from medical work. Fame came to him quickly. For a quarter of a century, he created his best works - a real "Lem's world". The peak of the literary career of the science fiction writer is between 1951 and 1976. Subsequently, the classical forms of artistic narration clearly bored the master (although from time to time he returns to them). Already in the 1970s, he began to write works of unusual form, a kind of collection of bare ideas - scientific, critical, philosophical - which are completely devoid of a literary shell. These are "scenarios of novels", reviews of non-existent books, treatises made in the style of an intellectual game.

The attention of millions of readers was attracted primarily by Lem's space fiction. Under the sign of "a space odyssey", his first book, "Astronauts" (1951), was created, which won wide popularity. But another book raised Stanisław Lem to the high pedestal of recognized authority in the field of science fiction: the novel The Magellanic Cloud (1955). In the period of the 1950-1960s, in the countries of the socialist camp, the question was acute: to show the population the coming paradise under the banner of communist ideology, to tell why monstrous sacrifices were made in World War II, to explain what is the ultimate goal of government reforms that destroyed the entire previous way of life . In the USSR, large-scale utopian paintings appeared, created by Ivan Efremov, Georgy Gurevich, Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. Lem fulfilled the same task in the novel "The Magellanic Cloud": the first part of the novel is occupied by a story about the people of the future - honest, pure, blazing with creative fire; in the second part, the messengers of the Earth on a colossal spaceship bring communism to aliens. But in "The Astronauts" and "Magellan Cloud" Lem is dry, academic, his talent is going through the stage of formation. Only at the end of the 1950s did he create one of his most beloved heroes - a sensible, balanced and decent person, the space pilot Pirks. In Pirks, for the first time, the gift of Lem the artist, sad and romantic, very unlike Lem the thinker, a cold mockery, a "reality trepanator" manifested itself. For three decades Pirx went from story to story. Lem showed with extraordinary clarity: having gone beyond the limits of the earth's atmosphere, humanity does not get rid of its problems, but simply takes them into space, and it will always need quiet smart "pirks" to stop people a stone's throw from disaster. Readers fell in love with this hero, perhaps more than any other characters that came out from the pen of the Polish science fiction writer.

In Return from the Stars (1961), Lem presented the reader with two eternally competing truths - the "truth of science" and the "truth of offal". On the one hand, the image of an inhabitant who wants to protect himself from foreign aggression, arrange life for himself and his family, is deprived of a daring craving for knowledge of the world, but is faithful to his loved ones and his home. On the other hand, the image of a heroic cosmonaut, a scientist who is ready to pay both his own and someone else's life for new grains of knowledge, but at the same time unable to truly love, fleeing from personal psychological problems to the ends of the world. Lem honestly and with extraordinary scrupulousness presents the arguments of both sides (in artistic form). Who is right? Or maybe both sides? Are ordinary people without scientists and scientists without ordinary people possible?

A fan of the mind, Stanislav Lem was well aware of the limitations of its capabilities. In an early story, "The Rat in the Maze," he painted a grim picture for enthusiastic fanatics of alien contact: human intelligence is too weak and limited to establish a dialogue with a dying alien. In the novel "Invincible" (1954), the entire power of the technological progress of earthlings is defeated in the battle with a cybernetic quasi-organism. The very fact of saving the crew of an earthly spaceship equipped with the latest science is based on luck: they simply did not pay much attention to people, some were killed, some were driven crazy, the best equipment was spoiled, but the aliens were not particularly noticed. You should never rely on strength, even science, - there will always be a greater strength ... In the semi-mystical, very dark novel "The Investigation" (1959), representatives of science, along with the police, show complete impotence in the face of the mystery of a series of sudden resurrections. The cold bodies of the dead are leaving the morgues, a whole team of smart people are struggling with questions of how and why this is happening, but cannot answer them. The book ends, and the mystery remains a mystery. The novel "Solaris" (1961) is considered the pinnacle of Lem's work. In it, a colossal, motley collection of knowledge of human science turns out to be powerless and useless when a drop of conscience and a drop of love are required. Solaris shows the author's attitude to the problem of the limits set for knowledge, the limitations for the human mind. People can build spaceships, rapidly develop the sphere of scientific knowledge, accumulating whole oceans of facts. But there are at least two positions that cannot be known to the last limit. This is, firstly, God (or something god-like, giving the highest sanction to all things). And, secondly, the man himself. The colossal amount of knowledge collected by scientists over several centuries cannot be applied to self-knowledge. And even if it were possible, would a person agree to solve his internal problems with the help of the prescriptions of science? Hardly. Lem is a great master of posing unsolvable questions, formulating global problems. But he rarely answers them. At best, it suggests how to behave to an individual and humanity as a whole, so as not to look like a complete idiot (several billions of complete idiots) when faced with such questions and problems. Yes, it is necessary to think, it is necessary to predict, it is necessary to resort to the help of the intellect. But as soon as a person establishes himself in the opinion that he managed to find the ultimate truth, eternal and unshakable, Lem immediately exposes him to ridicule. And his laughter is merciless.

Peru Stanislav Lem owns several cycles of humorous fiction, united by common characters. Two favorite couples play the role of a kind of entertainer, guides through his paradoxical ideas. The first of them is the space explorer Iyon Tikhiy and Professor Tarantoga. The second is the great cybernetic inventors Trurl and Klapaucius. The eccentricities of robots are only an excuse to show the absurdity and illogicality of the structure of human society, to highlight scientific dead ends, to demonstrate the clumsiness of mass literature.

One of Lem's best works, and perhaps the scariest, is the fantastic detective Runny nose (1976). One by one, several middle-aged rich lovers go crazy and commit suicide to relax in Italian resorts. To find the mysterious killer, a private detective agency organized a "spoof operation". A man was sent to Italy, who in everything is as similar as possible to the victims. He had to visit the places where they lived, had fun and died. As a result, it turned out that all suicides came into a state of depression under the influence of chemicals contained in completely harmless (individually) objects - a remedy for baldness, candied almonds, cheap wine, etc. The world becomes extremely uncomfortable and unmanageable. It contains threats that are completely impossible to predict. Modernity was built by "old rich white men", asserting in the world what is dear to them. But in the second half of the 20th century Reality got out of their control and began to destroy them. “Humanity has multiplied and condensed so much,” says one of the heroes of the story Runny nose, “that it begins to be influenced by the laws by which atoms exist. Each atom ... moves chaotically, but it is chaos that gives rise to a certain order.” Lem was one of the first to feel the cold breath of the future, bursting from the third millennium into the supposedly comfortable world of modern reality, based on physical and mathematical concepts, deceptive political science and banking. He warns: mankind has built a house in which all comforts can fail at any moment.

Several films have been made based on Lem's works. The novel "Solaris" was repeatedly filmed - in particular, by director A. Tarkovsky. In the USSR, the film "Inquiry of Pilot Pirks" based on the story "The Court" was also popular.

Lem also became the author of significant works of a scientific nature. In particular, all over the world, specialists in forecasting the future within the framework of science - futurology - know the fundamental, very significant work of Stanislav Lem "Fantasy and Futurology" (1970). In an earlier book, The Sum of Technology (1964), the science fiction writer himself appears as a practicing futurist. He is trying to outline the routes for the development of modern civilization, bearing in mind that it will retain its technogenic basis in the future. Finally, his culturological work Philosophy of Chance (1968) is widely known. The last decades of Lem's work are marked by a predominant interest in philosophy, sociology, methodology, and not in fiction. However, his name is primarily associated with science fiction.

Official website of Stanisław Lem - lem.pl (English, Polish, Russian)

Biography

life and creation

The best biography belongs to the pen of Stanislav Lem himself. In the novel "The High Castle" (1975) he spoke about his childhood in Lvov, and "My Life", published in Berlin in 1983, contained the writer's reflections on "hard spiritual work", a writing method that glorified the author with such famous works as " Solaris", "Star Diaries of John the Quiet", "Futurological Congress" and "Return from the Stars".

Childhood and youth in Lviv

Stanisław Lem was born into a well-to-do medical family of Polish-Jewish origin. His father, Samuil Lem, a laryngologist by profession, had previously served as a military doctor in the Austro-Hungarian army; the writer's mother ran the household. From 1932 to 1939 Stanislav studied at the II male gymnasium named after Karol Shainokha2. Having received a certificate of secondary education, Stanisla Lem, wanting to follow in his father's footsteps, entered the Lvov Medical Institute, where he studied in 1940 - 1941 at a time when Lvov became a Soviet city. With the outbreak of World War II and the German occupation of Lvov in 1942, Lem worked as an assistant mechanic and welder in the garages of a German company engaged in the processing of raw materials. Thanks to forged documents, he was able to survive the harsh conditions of the Nazi purges while participating in the Polish resistance. When Soviet troops liberated the city in 1944, Lem continued his studies at the medical institute.

Move to Krakow and start writing

In 1946, after Lviv ceased to belong to Poland, Stanislav Lem moved to Krakow as part of the repatriation campaign, where he entered the medical faculty of the Jagiellonian University. The same year was the year of the literary debut of Stanisław Lem - the story "The Man from Mars" (Czlowiek z Marsa) was published in the magazine "New World of Adventures" (Nowy Swiat Przygod), and for the period 1946 - 1948 several poems and short stories appeared in print. . After graduating from the university in 1948, Lem received a certificate of completion of medical education, but did not receive a diploma, because at the last exam he refused to answer questions in the spirit of the Lysenko doctrine that was then dominant in biology. The absence of a diploma forced Lem to give up all hopes of continuing scientific studies in theoretical biology, but freed him from the need to work as a military doctor, since specialists with a higher medical education were automatically drafted into the army. Back in 1947, Lem took a position as a research assistant at the Jagiellonian University in the laboratory of Dr. Mieczysław Chojnowski, a leading Polish specialist in psychometry. At the same time, Lem began collaborating with the journal Life of Science (Zycie Nauki), where he wrote reviews on various areas of scientific knowledge. In 1953, Lem married Dr. Barbara Lesniak, a radiologist.

During the same period, Lem wrote a partially autobiographical novel, The Hospital of the Transfiguration (Szpital Przemienienia), but censors in Stalinist Poland delayed publication of the work until 1955, until the writer corrected the novel in the traditions of socialist realism. This novel and a number of Lem's other writings painted an optimistic picture of a future where science and technology served communist progress. Although Lem later completely repudiated these early writings, for that period they put him forward as one of the most talented Polish writers. In 1951, Lem was allowed to publish the novel Astronauts (Astronauci), which, like science fiction literature, was intended for a young audience and was allowed by the authorities only because it depicted the triumph of interplanetary communism in the future.

Creativity in 1960 - 1980

After the October events of 1956, when the process of de-Stalinization began in Poland and the pressure of the authorities on literature eased, the tone of Lem's writings changed and became more independent, experimental and even radical, although the writer was always quite restrained in expressing his political views. The Polish government still did not tolerate any criticism of itself, but considering science fiction an unimportant and frivolous genre, it allowed its adherents to address taboo political issues under the guise of harmless fantasy. The next 2 decades, starting in the late 1960s, turned the Polish writer Lem into the world-famous writer Stanisław Lem3. It was during these years that Lem wrote such famous works as "Eden" (Eden, 1959), "Return from the Stars" (Powrot z gwiazd, 1961), "Solaris" (Solaris, 1961), "Invincible" (Niezwyciezony, 1964) , "Cyberiada" (Cyberiada, 1965), "The Voice of the Lord" (Glos Pana, 1968), "Star Diaries" (Dzienniki gwiazdowe, 1953-1999)4 - more than 17 books in total, many of which have been translated into foreign languages. Lem's international fame as a serious science fiction writer was reinforced by the publication of his Dialogues (Dialogi, 1957) and Summa Technologiae (1964), which are among Lem's most famous philosophical texts.

In 1973, the Science Fiction Society of America (SFWA), recognizing Lem's literary achievements, proclaimed him an honorary member. Nevertheless, Lem was quickly expelled from there at the suggestion of Philip Farmer and a number of other authors. Other members, including Ursula Le Guin, protested the decision. Under their pressure, Lem was offered membership in 1976, albeit a regular one, but he declined. In 1982, after the introduction of martial law in Poland, Stanisław Lem left his homeland and went to West Berlin, where he joined the Institute for Advanced Studies (Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin). A year later, Lem settled in Vienna. Lem wrote two of his last science fiction novels abroad: "Peace on Earth" (Pokoj na Ziemi, 1987) and "Fiasco" (Fiasko, 1986). The writer returned to Poland in 1988. On March 26, 2006, at the age of 84, Stanisław Lem died in Krakow.

Biography (V. A. Khorev. Great Soviet Encyclopedia. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. 1969-1978.)

Lem (Lem) Stanislav (b. 12.9.1921, Lviv), Polish writer. Born in the family of a doctor. In 1939-41 he studied at the Lvov Medical Institute; graduated from the medical faculty of the Jagiellonian University in Krakow (1948). He began publishing in 1946. The author of numerous science fiction works that discuss the possible social consequences of the development of science and technology, denounce the consumer attitude to life, militarism, and military psychosis: The Astronauts (1951, Russian translation 1957), The Magellanic Cloud ( 1955, Russian translation 1960), Eden (1959, Russian translation 1966), Invasion from Aldebaran (1959, Russian translation 1960), Return from the Stars (1961; Russian translation 1965 - with a foreword by cosmonaut G.S. Titov), Diary Found in a Bath (1961), Solaris (1961, Russian translation 1963; Soviet film of the same name 1972), Invincible (1964, Russian translation 1964), and others. philosophical grotesque, satire, parody (“Star Diaries”, 1957; “Tales of Robots”, 1964; “Cyberiad”, 1965; “Hunting”, 1965; etc.). L. also wrote the psychological novel Unlost Time (1955), the detective novel The Consequence (1959), the autobiographical novel The High Castle (1966, Russian translation 1969), essay books on the philosophical problems of cybernetics (Dialogues, 1957) , cosmonautics ("Going into orbit", 1962), heuristics and futurology ("The sum of technology", 1964, Russian translation 1968), science of literature ("Philosophy of chance", 1968) and science fiction ("Absolute Vacuum", 1971) .

Op.; Fantastyka i futurologia, t. 1-2, Kr., 1970; Bezsennosc, Kr., 1971; Opowiesci about pilocie Pirxie, Warsz., 1973; in Russian per. - Formula Lymfater, M., 1964; Hunting for a sataur, M., 1965; Pirk's navigator. - Voice of Heaven, M., 1971.

Biography

Stanislav Lem was born on September 12, 1921 in Lviv, in the family of a laryngologist. “I learned to write at the age of four. Really, however, this skill could not be used. The first letter I wrote to my father from Skole, where I traveled with my mother, was a small description of my adventures in a real village toilet. Yes, yes, the same one - with a hole in the wooden floor. Something I didn't mention, though. In this very hole, I threw out a bunch of our master's keys ... ”(“ Stanislav Lem about himself ”) From 1932 he studied at the II Men's Gymnasium. K. S. Szajnochy, in 1939 received a certificate of secondary education.

In 1973, the American Society of Science Fiction Writers of America recognized the literary achievements of Stanislav Lem, but Lem did not stay in the ranks of this Society for long: he was expelled for critical remarks about the low level of American science fiction. After Lem's expulsion, Michael Moorcock and Ursula Le Guin demanded their "resignation" in protest. Stanisław Lem - member of the Polish Writers' Association and Polish Pen-Club, honorary doctor of the Wrocław Polytechnic Institute, member of PAU (Polska Akademia Umiejetnosci; 1994), winner of many national and foreign awards, including the State Prize of Poland (Polish state prizes; 1976), Austrian State Prize (Austrian State Prize for the European Culture; 1986), laureate of the Franz Kafka Prize, Knight of the Order of the White Eagle (The Medal of the White Eagle; 1996), holder of several academic degrees (Warsaw Polytechnic, Opole University, University of Lvov, Jagiellonian University). Since 2000, Stanisław Lem has been a member of the Poland 2000 Committee, acting under the protection of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

He died on March 27, 2006 in Krakow at the age of 84 after a long heart disease.

Bibliography

Novels

* 1951 - Astronauts (Astronauci)
* 1955 - Hospital of the Transfiguration (Szpital Przemienienia)
* 1955 - Magellanic Cloud (Oblok Magellana)
* 1955 - Investigation (Sledztwo)
* 1959 - Eden (Eden)
* 1961 - Return from the stars (Powrot z gwiazd)
* 1961 - Manuscript found in the bath (Pamietnik znaleziony w wannie)
* 1961 - Solaris (Solaris)
* 1964 - Invincible (Niezwyciezony)
* 1966 - High Castle (Wysoki zamek)
* 1968 - Voice of the Lord (Niezwyciezony)
* 1971 - Futurological Congress (Kongres futurologiczny)
* 1976 - Runny nose (Katar)
* 1982 - Inspection on the spot (Wizja lokalna)
* 1986 - Fiasco (Fiasco)
* 1987 - Peace on Earth (Pokoj na Ziemi)

Cycles of novels and short stories

* Tales of robots (Bajki robotow)
* 1964 - Three electric knights (Trzej elektrycerze)
* 1964 - Uranium ears (Uranowe uszy)
* 1964 - How Erg Self-exciter overcame the pale (Jak Erg Samowzbudnik Bladawca pokonal)
* 1964 - Treasures of King Biscalara (Skarby krola Biskalara)
* 1964 - Two monsters (Dwa potwory)
* 1964 - White Death (Biala smierc)
* 1964 - How Mikromil and Gigacyan initiated the recession of nebulae (Jak Mikromil i Gigacyan ucieczke mglawic wszczeli)
* 1964 - Tale of the digital machine that fought the dragon (Bajka o maszynie cyfrowej, co ze smokiem walczyla)
* 1964 - Advisors to King Hydrops (Doradcy krola Hydropsa)
* 1964 - Friend of Automateus (Przyjaciel Automateusza)
* 1964 - King Globares and the Wise Men (Krol Globares i medrcy)
* 1963 - The Tale of King Murdas (Bajka o krolu Murdasie)
* 1992 - Riddle (Zagadka)
* Cyberiada (Cyberiada)
* 1964 - How the Universe Survived (Jak ocalal swiat)
* 1964 - Trurl's Machine (Maszyna Trurla)
* 1964 - Strong thrashing (Wielkie lanie)
* The seven journeys of Trurl and Klapaucius
* 1965 - The first Journey, or Gargantsian's Trap (Wyprawa pierwasza, czyli pulapka Gargancjana)
* 1964 - First Journey A, or Elektrover Trurla (Wyprawa pierwasza A, czyli Eletrybalt Trurla)
* 1965 - The Second Journey, or What service Trurl and Klapauciy rendered to Tsar Zhestokus. (Wyprawa druga, czyli oferta krola Okrucyusza)
* 1963 - Third Journey, or Probabilistic Dragons. (Wyprawa trzecia, czyli smoki prawdopodobienstwa)
* 1965 - Fourth Journey, or About how Trurl used the Zhenotron, wishing to save the prince of Pantarctic from the languor of love, and how then he had to resort to a detonator. (Wyprawa czwarta, czyli o tym, jak Trurl kobietron zastosowal, krolewicza Pantarktyka odmak milosnych chcac zbawic, i jak potem do uzycia dzieciomiotu przyszlo)
* 1965 - The Fifth Journey, or About the Pranks of King Balerion. (Wyprawa piata, czyli o figlach krola Baleryona)
* 1964 - Fifth Journey A, or Trurl's Consultation. (Wyprawa piata A, czyli konsultacja Trurla)
* 1964 - The sixth Journey, or How Trurl and Klapaucius created the Demon of the Second Kind in order to defeat the robber Mordon. (Podroz szosta, czyli jak Trurl i Klapaucjusz demona drugiego rodzaju stworzyli, aby zboja Gebona pokonac)
* 1965 - The seventh journey, or How Trurl's own perfection led to trouble. (Podroz siodma, czyli o tym, jak wlasna doskonalosc Trurla do zlego przywiodla)
* 1965 - About Queen Ferricia and Princess Crystal (O krolewiczu Ferrycym i krolewnie Krystali)
* 1965 - The Tale of the Three Telling Machines of King Genialon (Bajka o trzech maszynach opowiadajacych krola Genialona)
* 1965 - Altruizin, or the True Narrative of How the Hermit Dobricius wished to make the cosmos happy and what came of it
* 1971 - Sobyschas (Kobyszcze)
* 1976 - Education of Tsifrusha (Edukacja cyfrania)
* 1979 - Repetition (Powtorka)
* Tales of the pilot Pirks (Opowiesci o pilocie Pirxie)
* 1959 - Test (Test)
* 1963 - Conditioned reflex (Odruch warunkowy)
* 1959 - Patrol (Patrol)
* 1959 - Albatross (Albatros)
* 1961 - Terminus (Terminus)
* 1963 - Hunting (Polowanie)
* 1965 - Pirx's story (Opowiadanie Pirxa)
* 1965 - Accident (Wypadek)
* 1968 - Inquiry (Rozprawa)
* 1971 - Ananke (Ananke)
* Star diaries of Iyon the Quiet (Dzienniki gwiazdowe)
* 1964 Seventh Journey (Podroz siodma)
* 1966 Eighth Journey (Podroz osma)
* 1960 Eleventh Journey (Podroz jedenasta)
* 1957 The twelfth journey (Podroz dwunasta)
* 1956 The thirteenth journey (Podroz trzynasta)
* 1956 Fourteenth Journey (Podroz czternasta)
* 1971 Journey eighteenth (Podroz osiemnasta)
* 1971 Twentieth Journey (Podroz dwudziesta)
* 1971 Journey twenty-first (Podroz dwudziesta pierwsza)
* 1954 Journey twenty-second (Podroz dwudziesta druga)
* 1954 Journey twenty-third (Podroz dwudziesta trzecia)
* 1953 Journey twenty-fourth (Podroz dwudziesta czwarta)
* 1954 Journey twenty-fifth (Podroz dwudziesta piata)
* 1954 Journey twenty-sixth (Podroz dwudziesta szosta)
* 1966 Journey twenty-eighth (Podroz dwudziesta osma)
* 1999 The last journey of Ijona Tichego (Ostatnia podroz Ijona Tichego)
* 1983 On the profitability of dragons (Pozytek ze smoka)
* From the memoirs of Iyon the Quiet (I Ze wspomnien Ijona Tichego)
* 1960-1962 - five stories that do not have their own titles
* 1964 - Clinic of Dr. Vliperdius (Zaklad doktora Vliperdiusa)
* 1966 - Doctor Diagoras (Doktor Diagoras)
* 1966 - Save the Cosmos! (open letter from Ijona Tichego)
* 1976 - Professor A. Donda (Profesor A. Donda)
* Absolute emptiness (Doskonala proznia)
* 1971 - Absolute emptiness (Doskonala proznia)
* 1971 - Robinsonades (Les Robinsonades)
* 1971 - Gigamesh (Gigamesh)
* 1971 - Sexplosion (1971)
* 1971 - Gruppenfuhrer Louis XIV (Gruppenfuhrer Louis XIV)
* 1971 - Nothing, or Sequence (Rien du tout, ou la consequence)
* 1971 - Perikalipsis (Perycalypsis)
* 1971 - Idiot (Idiota)
* 1971 - Make a book yourself (Do Yourself a Book)
* 1971 - Odysseus from Ithaca (Odys z Itaki)
* 1971 - You (Toi)
* 1971 - Corporation "Being" (Being Inc.)
* 1971 - "Culture as a mistake" (Die Kultur als Fehler)
* 1971 - About the impossibility of life; On the Impossibility of Forecasting (De Impossibilitate Vitae; De Impossibilitate Prognoscendi)
* 1974 - I will not serve (Non serviam)
* 1971 - New cosmogony (Nowa Kosmogonia)
* Imaginary value (Wielkosc urojona)
* 1973 Necrobie (Necrobie)
* 1973 Eruntika (Eruntyka)
* 1973 History of bit literature (Historia literatury bitycznej)
* 1973 Extelopedia Vestranda (Ekstelopedia Vestranda)
* 1973 Golem XIV (Golem XIV)
* Library of the XXI century (Biblioteka XXI wieku)
* 1980 Provocation (Prowokacja)
* 1982 One minute (Jedna minuta)
* 1983 Creative principle of annihilation. The World as Holocaust (Das kreative Vernichtungsprinzip.The World as Holocaust)
* 1983 Weapon System of the Twenty First Century or The Upside-down Evolution

Novels and stories that are not included in the cycles

* 1946 - Man from Mars (Czlowiek z Marsa)
* 1946 - Hauptsturmführer Koestnitz (Hauptsturmfuhrer Koestnitz)
* 1946 - Post (Placowka)
* 1946 - New (Nowy)
* 1946 - D-Day (D-Day)
* 1946 - Meeting in Kolobrzeg (Spotkanie w Kolobrzegu)
* 1946 - Alien (Obcy)
* 1946 - The story of one discovery (Dzieje jednego odkrycia)
* 1947 - Atomic City (Miasto atomowe)
* 1947 - End of the world at eight o'clock (Koniec swiata o osmej)
* 1947 - Man from Hiroshima (Czlowiek z Hiroshimy)
* 1947 - Garden of Darkness (Ogrod ciemnosci)
* 1947 - V over London (V nad Londynem)
* 1948 - Trust of your dreams (Trust twoich marzen)
* 1948 - History of high voltage (Historia o wysokim napieciu)
* 1954 - Client of God (Klient PANA BOGA)
* 1954 - Crystal ball (Krystalowa kula)
* 1954 - ESIP (ESID)
* 1956 - Rat in the labyrinth (Szczur w labyrynchie)
* 1957 - Auto interview (Autowywiad)
* 1958 - Invasion (Inwazja)
* 1958 - Friend (Przyjaciel)
* 1959 - Invasion from Aldebaran (Inwazja z Aldebarana)
* 1959 - Hammer (Mlot)
* 1959 - Darkness and mold (Ciemnosc i plesn)
* 1959 - Exodus (Exodus)
* 1961 - Formula Limfatera (Formula Limfatera)
* 1964 - True (Prawda)
* 1965 - Two young men (Dwoch mlodych ludzi)
* 1972 - 137 seconds (137 seconds)
* 1976 - Mask (Mask)
* 1983 - My life (Mein Leben)
* 1996 - Mattress (Materac)
* 1996 - Pitvale XXI century (Pitvale XXI wieku)

Plays

* 1955 - Do you exist, Mr. Jones? (Czy Pan istnieje, Mr. Johns?)
* 1963 - Faithful robot (Wierny robot)
* Plays about Professor Tarantoga:
* 1963 - The Journey of Professor Tarantogi (Wyprawa profesora Tarantogi)
* 1963 - Professor Tarantogi's Black Room (Czarna komnata profesora Tarantogi)
* 1963 - Professor Tarantogi's strange guest (Dziwny gosc profesora Tarantogi)
* 1975 - Reception hours of Professor Tarantogi (Godzina przyjec profesora Tarantogi)
* 1971 - Layer cake (Przekladniec)
* 1976 - Moonlight Night (Noc ksiezycowa)

non-fiction

* 1957 Dialogues (Dialogi)
* 1967 The sum of technology (Summa technologiae)
* 1968 Philosophy of chance (Filozofia przypadku)
* 1970 Fiction and futurology (Fantastyka I futurologia)
* 1996 The Secret of the Black Room (collection of essays) (Tajemnica chinskiego pokoju)
* 1999 Megabit bomb (collection of essays) (Bomba megabitowa)
* 2000 Moments (collection of essays) (Okamgnienie)

Screen adaptations

* "Icarus-1" (Ikarie XB-1). Czechoslovakia, 1963
* "The Black Room of Professor Tarantoga." (Czarna komnata profesora Tarantogi). Poland, 1964
* Faithful Robot. USSR, 1965
* "Professor Zazul". (Professor Zazul). Poland, 1965
* Thirty Minute Theatre. (Thirty-Minute Theatre). UK, 1965

* "Trial". USSR, 1968
* Silent Star (Der Schweigende Stern). 1959 directed by Kurt Metzig - based on the novel The Astronauts
* "Layer cake" (Przekladaniec). TV movie, Poland, 1968, directed by Andrzej Wajda)
* Solaris. Teleplay, USSR, 1968, director B. Nirenburg)

* "Consequence" (Sledztwo). Poland, 1973, directed by Marek Piestrak.
* "Inquiry of the pilot Pirks" (Test pilota Pirxa). Poland, 1978, director Marek Pestrak

* "From the stellar adventures of Ion the Pacific." Cartoon, Baku, 1985.
*Return from the Stars. TV show, USSR, 1990 TV "Leningrad", 6 episodes.
* "Consequence" (Sledztwo). Teleplay, Poland, 1997, director Waldemar Krzystek - based on the novel "Investigation"

* "Ijon Tichy: Space Pilot" (Ijon Tichy: Raumpilot). Series, Germany, 2007.

Biography (en.wikipedia.org)

Stanislav Lem was born on September 12, 1921 in the city of Lvov in Poland (now Ukraine) in the family of an otolaryngologist Samuil Lem and Sabina Voller.

He was studying medicine at Lviv University when World War II began. Despite their Jewish origin, during the war years, the family managed to avoid deportation to the ghetto thanks to forged documents (all other relatives of the Lem family died). During the German occupation, Lem worked as an auto mechanic and welder, participating in a Nazi resistance group. In 1946, Lem immigrated from the territory that became part of the USSR to Krakow and began to study medicine at the Jagiellonian University (Uniwersytet Jagiellonski).

After graduating in 1948, Stanislav Lem refused to take the final exams, not wanting to become a military doctor, and received only a certificate of completion of the course. He worked as an assistant to Prof. Mieczysław Khoynovsky in the "Scientific Circle" ("The Circle" was a collector of foreign scientific literature) and began to write stories in his spare time in order to earn additional livelihood in the difficult post-war period. In 1948-1950 Lem worked as a junior assistant in the anatomical theater at the university. His works were first published in 1946. Later, this hobby grew into Lem's main occupation, which relegated work in medicine to the background.

Lem's first literary success came with the publication of The Astronauts in 1951. The novel has been repeatedly published abroad.

In 1953 he married Barbara Lesniak, who worked as a radiologist. On March 14, 1968, their son Tomasz was born.

In 1973, Lem was awarded an honorary membership in the American science fiction writers organization SFWA (the founder of the Nebula Prize), from which he was expelled in 1976 for criticizing American science fiction literature, which he called kitsch, accused of poor thoughtfulness, poor style writing and an excessive interest in profit at the expense of new ideas and literary forms. Later, after protests from Ursula Le Guin and several of its other members, the SFWA offered him regular membership, which Lem turned down.

In 1981, Lem received an honorary degree from the Wroclaw University of Technology (Polish: Politechnika Wroclawska), and later from the Opole, Lviv and Jagiellonian universities. Honorary Doctor of Lviv Medical University.

In 1997, Stanisław Lem became an honorary resident of Krakow.

He died on March 27, 2006 in Krakow at the age of 84 after a long heart disease.

You can read more about the life story and creative path of Stanislav Lem in his autobiographical work “My Life” (German: Mein Leben, 1983) and the novel about Lviv childhood “The High Castle”, as well as in a series of interviews published under the title “So Spoke ... Lem.

Creation

Stanislav Lem wrote about the often seemingly insurmountable difficulties of human communication with extraterrestrial civilizations far from people, about the technological future of earthly civilization. His later works are also devoted to an idealistic and utopian society and the problems of human existence in a world in which there is nothing to do due to technological development. His communities of extraterrestrial worlds include swarms of mechanical insects ("Invincible"), a sentient ocean ("Solaris"), and others. The problems of technological utopia are discussed in "Return from the Stars", "Peace on Earth", "Inspection on the Spot" and a little bit in "Cyberiad".

Lem's works are replete with intellectual humor, puns, all kinds of allusions.

According to Lem himself, his work was greatly influenced by the works of the following authors:
* Saul Bellow (1915-2005), American writer, winner of the 1976 Nobel Prize in Literature.
* Herbert Wells (1866-1946), English writer and publicist, founder of science fiction literature of the 20th century.
* Norbert Wiener (1894-1964), American philosopher and mathematician, founder of cybernetics.
* Claude Elwood Shannon (1916-2001), one of the founders of the mathematical theory of information.
* Jules Verne (1828-1905), popular French writer.
* William Olaf Stapledon (1886-1950), English philosopher and science fiction writer.

Memory

* In honor of Lem, the minor planet 3836 Lem (English), discovered on September 22, 1979 by N. S. Chernykh in the CrAO, is named.
* Google Doodle (interactive, based on the illustrations of the Polish artist Daniel Mroz for Cyberiad) for the 60th anniversary of the first publication.

Major works

* "Man from Mars" (Czlowiek z Marsa; 1946, published in Russian in 1997)
* "Hospital of the Transfiguration" (Szpital przemienienia; 1948, published in Russian in 1995). Opened the trilogy "Time Unlost" (Czas nieutracony; 1955)
* "Astronauts" (Astronauci; 1951, published in Russian in 1957)
* "The Star Diaries of Iyon the Quiet" (Dzienniki gwiazdowe; 1953-1999)
* Magellanic Cloud (Oblok Magellana; 1955, published in Russian in 1960)
* "Dialogues" (Dialogi; 1957)
* "Invasion from Aldebaran" (Inwazja z Aldebarana; 1959, published in Russian in 1960)
* "Consequence" (Sledztwo; 1959)
* "Eden" (Eden; 1959, published in Russian in 1966)
* "Return from the Stars" (Powrot z gwiazd; 1961, published in Russian in 1965)
* "Manuscript found in the bath", also "Diary found in the bath" (Pamietnik znaleziony w wannie; 1961)
* "Solaris" (Solaris; 1961, published in Russian in 1963)
* "Invincible" (Niezwyciezony; 1964, published in Russian in 1964)
* Robot Tales (Bajki robotow; 1964)
* "Summa tekhnologiae" (Summa Technologiae; 1964, published in Russian in 1968)
* Cyberiada (Cyberiada; 1965)
* "High Castle" (Wysoki zamek; 1966, published in Russian in 1969)
* "Voice of the Lord", earlier the name "Voice of the sky" met (Glos Pana; 1968)
* "Tales of Pilot Pirx" (Opowiesci o pilocie Pirxie; 1968)
* "Philosophy of chance" (Filozofia przypadku; 1968)
* "Absolute Void" (Doskonala Proznia; 1971)
* "Futurological Congress" (Kongres futurologiczny 1971)
* "Imaginary value" (Wielkosc urojona 1973)
* Runny nose (Katar; 1975)
* "Golem XIV" (Golem XIV; 1981)
* "Inspection on the spot" (Wizja lokalna; 1982)
* "Fiasco" (Fiasco; 1986)
* "Peace on Earth" (Pokoj na Ziemi; 1987)
* "Megabit bomb" (Bomba megabitowa; 1999)

Articles

Screen versions of works

* Silent Star (Der Schweigende Stern). Poland - East Germany, 1960, directed by Kurt Metzig, based on the novel The Astronauts
* "Excursion into space" (Wycieczka w kosmos). Poland, 1961
* "Do you exist, Mr. Jones?". Short television film, Chelyabinsk Television Studio, 1961, director Leonid Piver
* "Uninhabited planet" (Bezludna planeta). Poland, 1962
* "Friend" (Przyjaciel). Poland, 1963
* "Icarus-1" (Ikarie XB-1). Czechoslovakia, 1963, based on the novel The Magellanic Cloud
* "The Black Room of Professor Tarantogi" (Czarna komnata profesora Tarantogi). Poland, 1964
* Faithful Robot. USSR, 1965
* "Professor Zazul" (Profesor Zazul). Poland, 1965
* Thirty Minute Theatre. Season 4, Episode 34 (Thirty-Minute Theatre. Season 4, Episode 34: Roly Poly). UK, 1969, based on the play Do You Exist, Mr. Jones?
* Faithful Robot. Czechoslovakia, 1967
* "Trial". USSR, 1968, director E. Ostashenko
* "Layer cake" (Przekladaniec). TV movie, Poland, 1968, directed by Andrzej Wajda
* Solaris. Teleplay, USSR, 1968, director B. Nirenburg
* Solaris. USSR, 1972, director Andrei Tarkovsky
* "Consequence" (Sledztwo). Poland, 1973, directed by Marek Pestrak
* "The Adventures of Pirx" (Pirx kalandjai). Mini-series, Hungary, 1973
* "Inquiry of the pilot Pirks" (Test pilota Pirxa). Poland - USSR, 1978, director Marek Pestrak
* "Hospital of the Transfiguration" (Szpital przemienienia). 1979 directed by Edward Zebrowski
* “The Fourteenth Journey” from “The Diaries of Iyon the Quiet”, in the television cycle “This Fantastic World”, issue 1. USSR, Central Television, 1979. Director Tamara Pavlyuchenko, scriptwriters Lyudmila Ermilina, Andrey Kostenetsky
* “From the diaries of Iyon the Quiet. Journey to Interopia. Cartoon, Baku, 1985
* Victim of the Brain. The Netherlands, 1988, includes a film adaptation of the "Journey of the Seventh" from the series "The Seven Journeys of Trurl and Klapaucius"
*Return from the Stars. TV show, USSR, 1990, TV "Leningrad", 6 episodes
* "Marian Trench" (Marianengraben). Germany, 1994
* "Mask". Teleplay from the cycle of TV programs "Shop of the Worlds" (starring: O. Bykova, I. Krasko, E. Dzyameshkevich), 1995
* "Consequence" (Sledztwo). Teleplay, Poland, 1997, director Waldemar Krzystek, based on the novel "Investigation"
* "Solaris" (Solaris). USA, 2002 Directed by Steven Soderbergh
* "one". Hungary, 2008, based on the essay "One Minute of Humanity" from the collection "Provocation"
* "Ijon Tichy: Space Pilot" (Ijon Tichy: Raumpilot). Series, Germany, 2007
* "Mask". Poland, 2010, directed by Steven and Timothy Quay
* "Congress" (English) Russian, 2013, directed by Ari Folman, based on the novel "Futurological Congress"

Notes

Polish philosopher, futurist and writer

short biography

Stanislav Lem(Polish Stanisław Lem; September 12, 1921, Lviv, Poland - March 27, 2006, Krakow, Poland) - Polish philosopher, futurologist and writer (fiction writer, essayist, satirist, critic). His books have been translated into 41 languages and have sold over 30 million copies. The author of the fundamental philosophical work "The Sum of Technology", in which he anticipated the creation of virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and also developed the ideas of human autoevolution, the creation of artificial worlds, and many others.

Stanislav Lem was born on September 12, 1921 in Lviv in the family of otolaryngologist Samuil Lem (1879-1954) and Sabina Voller (1892-1979). Cousin of the poet Maryan Hemar. The family lived in house number 4 on Brierovskaya street.

He studied at the gymnasium named after Karol Shainokha in Lviv. He was studying medicine at Lviv University when World War II began. Despite their Jewish origin, during the war years, the family managed to avoid deportation to the ghetto thanks to forged documents (all close relatives of the Lem family, who were then in Poland, died). During the German occupation, Lem worked as an auto mechanic and welder, participating in a Nazi resistance group. In 1945 Lem repatriated from the territory that became part of the USSR to Krakow and began to study medicine at the Jagiellonian University ( Uniwersytet Jagielloński).

After graduating in 1948, Stanislav Lem refused to take the final exams, not wanting to become a military doctor, and received only a certificate of completion of the course. He worked as an assistant to Professor Mieczysław Chojnowski in the "Science Circle" ("The Circle" was a collector of all foreign scientific literature that then came to Poland). Lem began to write short stories in his spare time in order to earn additional livelihood in the difficult post-war period. His works were first published in 1946. Later, this hobby grew into Lem's main occupation, which relegated work in medicine to the background. In 1948-1950, Lem also worked as a junior assistant in the anatomical theater at the university.

Lem's first literary success came with the publication of The Astronauts in 1951. The novel has been repeatedly published abroad.

In 1953 he married Barbara Lesniak, who worked as a radiologist. On March 14, 1968, their son Tomasz was born.

In 1973, Lem was awarded an honorary membership in the American science fiction writers organization SFWA (the founder of the Nebula Prize), from which he was expelled in 1976 for criticizing American science fiction literature, which he called kitsch, accused of poor thoughtfulness, poor style writing and an excessive interest in profit at the expense of new ideas and literary forms. Later, after protests from Ursula Le Guin and several of its other members, the SFWA offered him regular membership, which Lem turned down.

In Poland, Lem sympathized with the dissident movement and joined the organization of opposition intellectuals, the Polish Independent Agreement.

In 1981, Lem received an honorary degree from the Wroclaw University of Technology (Polish: Politechnika Wrocławska), and later from the Opole, Lviv and Jagiellonian universities. Honorary Doctor of Lviv Medical University.

In 1997, Stanisław Lem became an honorary resident of Krakow.

He died on March 27, 2006 in Krakow at the age of 84 after a long heart disease. He was buried at the Salvatore cemetery.

Creation

Stanislav Lem wrote about the (often seemingly insurmountable) difficulties of humanity's communication with extraterrestrial civilizations, about the technological future of the planet. His later works are also devoted to an idealistic and utopian society and the problems of human existence in a world in which there is nothing to do due to technological development. His communities of extraterrestrial worlds include swarms of mechanical self-organizing "insects" ("Invincible"), an intelligent Ocean ("Solaris" ) and others. The problems of technological utopia are considered in the novels "Return from the Stars", "Peace on Earth", "Inspection on the Spot" and a little in the "Cyberiad" cycle.

Lem's works are replete with intellectual humor, puns, all kinds of allusions.