The story in one page
Captain John Carter, a Confederate veteran prospecting for gold in Arizona, retreats into a mysterious cave to escape an Apache attack. He awakens on Barsoom — the world known as Mars — where the lighter gravity allows him to leap thirty feet and shatter bone with a punch. Captured by the fierce, green-skinned Tharks, he navigates a culture that destroys its weak and prizes only combat. After rescuing Dejah Thoris, the Princess of Helium, Carter must bridge the divide between the warring green and red races. His survival hinges on mastering telepathy, riding monstrous thoats, and reaching a failing atmosphere factory before the planet suffocates. He battles to save the woman he loves, ultimately struggling to return to her across millions of miles of space.
Who's who
- John Carter
An immortal Virginia gentleman with exceptional combat skills and agility.
- Dejah Thoris
The red-skinned Princess of Helium who becomes Carter's love interest.
- Tars Tarkas
A noble Thark warrior who defies his brutal culture's lack of emotion.
- Sola
A green Martian female who secretly possesses maternal instincts and compassion.
- Woola
A loyal, multi-legged calot beast that acts as Carter's guardian.
What it's really about
- Biological Determinism
- Green Martians use rigid selection and communal incubators to eliminate emotion.
- Martial Honor
- Social status is earned through duels and the looting of rivals.
Why it's memorable
- John Carter realizing he can jump over buildings due to the low Martian gravity.
- The green Martians crushing all the rival Warhoon eggs inside a hidden incubator.
The ending, explained
Spoilers — show the ending
After opening the atmosphere factory to save the planet, Carter loses consciousness and wakes up back in the Arizona cave. He spends ten years in wealthy exile on Earth, staring at the red planet and wondering if his family survived.
For your book club
- Does the communal Martian incubator system successfully optimize a society for survival or merely cruelty?
- How does Carter's Southern code of chivalry conflict with the pragmatic brutality of Thark culture?