The Sane Men of Satan by Sam Merwin
Charles Justin, a banker drawn to the surviving landmarks of old Boston, finds his attachment to the past taking an extraordinary turn. An encounter with forces beyond ordinary experience brings him into a scheme involving other times and the direction of human history. Deborah, a woman from an earlier century, challenges both his practical calculations and his understanding of what matters. The story sets romantic attachment against the claims of detached rational control. Even when Justin appears to regain his ordinary life, uncertainty remains about how much of his adventure he has chosen and how much has been arranged for him.
By Sam Merwin · First published 1957 · Genre: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Philosophical Fiction · 11 chapters · 29,490 words
First lines
Does the past still live and not in dreams alone? Justin thought not till a strange decision took him back to days he knew as dead.
_Until recent times the Devil, to give him his due, was a figure of fear rather than of Hallowe'en fun. Nowadays, to most of our enlightened citizenry, Satan is a device used by the clergy to keep folk in line, or by a Goethe to create Faust. Consider then the plight of a thoroughly sophisticated man of today who discovers Old Nick to be not only real but deadlier by far than the horned brimstone-breather of legend._
What this Textopian page supports
The Sane Men of Satan is listed on Textopian as a novella by Sam Merwin, dated 1957 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Novella
- Author: Sam Merwin
- Date: 1957 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Philosophical Fiction, Historical Fiction, Romance
- Length: 29,490 words
- Structure: 11 chapters, 722 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for The Sane Men of Satan by Sam Merwin
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
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Genres
- Science Fiction — The narrative prominently features a spacecraft called Belvoir that exists in sub-space, time travel mechanics, and advanced alien civilization attempting to alter human history through temporal manipulation.
- Fantasy — The story contains fantastical elements including a magical garden paradise, impossible journey between times, and dream-logic transitions that blur reality and imagination.
- Philosophical Fiction — The work explores fundamental questions about sanity versus madness, free will versus determinism, and the nature of historical inevitability through extended dialogue and character motivation.
- Historical Fiction — Significant portions depict 18th-century Boston with detailed descriptions of period life, customs, architecture, and historical figures, providing authentic period setting and atmosphere.
Tags
time travel · alternate universe · science fiction · extraterrestrial intervention · history manipulation · temporal mechanics · Boston · 1950s · 18th century · spacecraft · parallel dimension · moral dilemma
Contents
- CHAPTER I
- CHAPTER II
- CHAPTER III
- CHAPTER IV
- CHAPTER V
- CHAPTER VI
- CHAPTER VII
- CHAPTER VIII
- CHAPTER IX
- CHAPTER X
- CHAPTER XI