ISO short story from 60's - small expedition goes paranoid as they approach a planet that turns out to be sentient

[bobbb]

don't know author or title

plot involves one of the crew running off into the forest, tripping and hitting his head so he goes unconscious. He is then able to be accepted into the planet "mind" that had been terrified by the "otherness" of the humans, and the paranoid waves stop. He stays on the planet while the others leave.

 

[Danny McG]

I think, even though this is from 1971 and not the 60's, that the mystery story is 'Vaster than Empires and more slow' by Ursula K. Le Guin.

Vaster than Empires and More Slow - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Ravensquawk]

The only story I could think of that matches was "Here There Be Tygers" by Ray Bradbury.

But after reading the summary to refresh a nearly-gone memory of "Vaster Than Empires and More Slow", I second Danny's answer.

Both stories have a crew visiting a sentient planet, and both crew leave the planet, except for one crew member, the only one who loves the planet, staying behind.

"Vaster Than Empires, though, is the only one that has the crew member found unconscious.

A Wikiwand on "Here There Be Tygers" names yet another story in similar stories in popular culture.

 

[Orcadian]

I think I've read this story. It involves a young man who knows or works with (perhaps is in love with) a young woman called Midori. She is able to communicate with beings known as 'phytoes'. They are part of a larger creature, perhaps a plant-consciousness. Sorry for vagueness; I read this in the 1970s! I have a 1970s SF diary somewhere and if I can find it, I'll look for the title.

 

[Ravensquawk]

I think I've read this story. It involves a young man who knows or works with (perhaps is in love with) a young woman called Midori. She is able to communicate with beings known as 'phytoes'. They are part of a larger creature, perhaps a plant-consciousness. Sorry for vagueness; I read this in the 1970s! I have a 1970s SF diary somewhere and if I can find it, I'll look for the title.

Okay, this is the next one I found to read.

Do you remember it as this one? "Hunter, Come Home" by Richard McKenna has Midori on a planet with phytos.

OpenLibrary.org has it archived for free in "A Century of Great Short Science Fiction Novels" starting on page 405.

It's long, and must be fairly obscure, so I don't know that anyone's narrated it for Librivox.
(Which I discovered on that last search is in cahoots- er, I think they call it "affiliated" with Open Library and Web Archive.)

As they say, I'll get back to you on that.

 

[Orcadian]

Okay, this is the next one I found to read.

Do you remember it as this one? "Hunter, Come Home" by Richard McKenna has Midori on a planet with phytos. OpenLibrary.org has it archived for free in "A Century of Great Short Science Fiction Novels" starting on page 405. It's long, and must be fairly obscure, so I don't know that anyone's narrated it for Librivox.

As they say, I'll get back to you on that.

That's the 'phytoes' book, @Ravensquawk ! Hunter, Come Home. I have a feeling they are part of a planet-wide vegetable organism. Before communication became possible it was killing (or would have killed) people, because they were hurting it. I think the two young people work together to stop that. But my memory is more than 45 years old, hence incomplete, at best!

Edit: I found a synopsis: "[A young man who has not yet [undergone his manhood ritual] ... feels strangely akin to the planet's most visible inhabitant, the Phytos. ... The ... slow-burning narrative [tells] of a planet becoming aware of danger and rousing itself to anger. ... [The novel's] subtext ... is an early rendering of [the Gaia idea] - and an ecological warning".

 

[Ravensquawk]

That's the 'phytoes' book, @Ravensquawk ! Hunter, Come Home. I have a feeling they are part of a planet-wide vegetable organism. Before communication became possible it was killing (or would have killed) people, because they were hurting it. I think the two young people work together to stop that. But my memory is more than 45 years old, hence incomplete, at best!

Edit: I found a synopsis: "[A young man who has not yet [undergone his manhood ritual] ... feels strangely akin to the planet's most visible inhabitant, the Phytos. ... The ... slow-burning narrative [tells] of a planet becoming aware of danger and rousing itself to anger. ... [The novel's] subtext ... is an early rendering of [the Gaia idea] - and an ecological warning".

I just read it!
They are part of a planet-wide life system, that never divided out between animal and plant life, and has aspects of both.

It matches the original question in that the native lifeform is afraid of the humans, with good reason in all of these stories. In "Hunter" the humans do get paranoid, but the "humans" are variations of humans from two different extrasolar planets, and there is tension and cold war between the people with the science and compassion and the people with the macho, primitive, kill-to-earn-status hunter culture. (The latter overtakes the new planet and attempts to kill off its native life.)

It could answer questions about several themes: humans hostile to the planet who are trying to destroy its native life; tree-like alines (well, to us; most of the story settings have humans as the aliens on their world); rapid genetic adaptation -- like over hours and days; humans merging with alien lifeforms; planet-wide group mind of lifeforms; and like the other two stories so far here, one human (or in this case a few) who is sympathetic to the native lifeform and stays behind.

Re: old memories:
It's a first read for "Hunter", but "Vaster Than Empires" apparently is gonna be like forgetting that Rosebud was the sled, or that AC said "Let there be light". And like starting all new and fresh again. Instead of forgetting the story, it's almost like forgetting that I hadn't read it.