The Illustrated Man

On Mars, Ettil Vyre is guilted by witches, his wife, and his father-in-law for not joining the Martian invasion of Earth. Ettil is more interested in reading than joining a war he does not think the Martians can win. A military detail arrests him.

In his cell, Ettil is interrogated about his possession of illegal Earth science fiction books. He is convinced the Martians will lose because they lack such effective propaganda; in these Earth stories, Earthmen always wins, while Martians “never wrote stories of such a fantastic nature” (188). Ettil is convinced this gives the Earthmen a critical edge in morale. When he is forced to join the army or burn, Ettil chooses burning but changes his mind at the last minute when he sees his son looking at him “like some dying animal, a wordless animal seeking rescue” (189).

On Earth, the Martians expect a battle, but when they land in Green Town, California, the president of the United American Producers, William Sommers, welcomes them instead. He claims that Earth has left behind war—in fact, they welcome their Martian overlords. Beauty queens file by, and a band plays. The Martians are suspicious, but the Earthmen seem content with just giving them branded products.