MathFiction: Schwarzschild Radius (Connie Willis)

a list compiled by Alex Kasman (College of Charleston)

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Schwarzschild Radius (1987)

Connie Willis
(click on names to see more mathematical fiction by the same author)
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Connie Willis' short-story ``Schwarzschild Radius'' is based on events in the life of Karl Schwarzschild, who gave the first exact solutions to the equations of general relativity. The historical aspects of the story here are enhanced by cleverly self-referential fictional details. Told in ``flashback form'', the events are recalled by a soldier who happened to intercept a letter from Einstein to Lieutenant Schwarzschild at the front line during World War I. As the story develops, haunting analogies are made between the situation of the soldiers in the trenches and the scientific theories being discussed. For example, the discussion of the red shift of light from distant stars is echoed in the soldier's treatment with an eye ointment that adds a red tint to everything he sees. The inability of information to leave from within the Schwarzschild radius of a black hole seems somehow to explain the fact that the soldiers' families are not receiving the letters and requests they write from the front line. In the end, we are left with the impression that even the disease which eventually claimed Schwarzschild's life was a consequence of the singular solutions he found to Einstein's equations.
This story can be found in the collection Imaginary Numbers.

Contributed by Rachel Barkley

The author utilizes both the past and the present tense in order to write about two different time periods, however, she switches them. The scenes from the past are written in the present while the scenes from the present are written in the past. The author draws parallels between war, disease and black holes, all of which cave in on themselves. I would love to read this story as a longer novel. This might be a way to incorporate more mathematics into the story. Nevertheless, this is a must-read for any war buff!

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Works Similar to Schwarzschild Radius

According to my `secret formula', the following works of mathematical fiction are similar to this one:

The Girl with the Celestial Limb by Pauline Melville
A Catastrophe Machine by Carter Scholz
Approaching Perimelasma by Geoffrey A. Landis
Lines of Longitude by Stephen Baxter
The Object by Alex Kasman
Incandescence by Greg Egan
Q.E.D. by Jack Eric Morpurgo
Solid Geometry by Ian McEwan
Mandelbrot the Magnificent by Liz Ziemska
Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

Ratings for Schwarzschild Radius:

Ratings

Have you seen/read this work of mathematical fiction? Then click here to enter your own votes on its mathematical content and literary quality or send me comments to post on this Webpage.

Mathematical Content:
2.76/5 (8 votes)

Literary Quality:
4.11/5 (9 votes)

Categories:

Genre	Science Fiction, Horror,
Motif	Real Mathematicians, War,
Topic	Mathematical Physics,
Medium	Short Stories,

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Where are the new works of mathematical fiction?: As you can see from this chronological listing, this database includes many works of mathematical fiction for each year from 1990 to 2025. Strangely, only two are listed for 2026, so far. Either less mathematical fiction is being published than in previous years or I'm just having more trouble finding it. If you know of any works of fiction that should be added to this list, especially recently published ones, please let me know. (Keep in mind that I do not include self-published works or children's fiction that just covers elementary mathematical concepts.) Thanks!

(Maintained by Alex Kasman, College of Charleston)