The Chrysalids

The Chrysalids is a young-adult science fiction novel, written by John Wyndham and first published in 1955. Wyndham was a renowned science fiction author of the post-World War II era, and many of his works are thus inspired by a potential nuclear apocalypse. The Chrysalids was well-received by critics and is considered one of Wyndham’s best novels. It was adapted into a BBC radio play in 1982 and a play in 1999.

This guide utilizes the 2008 Penguin Books edition of the novel.

Content Warning: The novel contains descriptions of child abuse and death by suicide.

Plot Summary

The story begins as protagonist David Strorm recalls a dream he had of a city with buildings, airplanes, and cars. Never having seen such a place, he is unsure how he could dream of it, but his older sister suggests he may be dreaming of the world as it was before Tribulation. She warns him never to tell anyone of these dreams, and David keeps this secret, not knowing why. He and his cousin, Rosalind, can communicate telepathically, something he sees as an ordinary part of his world.

David lives in Waknuk, a district near woods and farmland, in a prospering community that is strict about purity and respect for God. He lives with his two sisters, his parents Joseph and Emily, and his Uncle Axel. The house was built by David’s grandfather, Elias Strorm, who emigrated from the East. Elias was a man of strong faith, and his wife fell into depression after bearing two sons. Joseph preaches the faith daily. Around their house are various panels warning about mutations and adhering to purity. Mutations are called Deviations and can occur in animals, crops, or people; when they occur in people, they are deemed Blasphemies and sent to live in the Fringes, a barren place outside of Waknuk. The people often come to Waknuk to steal food and supplies.

David meets a girl named Sophie and discovers she has six toes. Her mother asks him to never tell anyone. David befriends Sophie and realizes that the religious doctrine is the reason for her suffering. He begins to question his worldview, knowing that Sophie is an ordinary girl who does not fit the description of Blasphemy. He starts visiting Sophie regularly, and her parents remain wary of him. He recalls a dream he had in which Joseph sacrificed Sophie. Many people witness it, but nobody cares or helps. David knows that if he were to tell Sophie’s parents about it, they would not doubt his loyalty.

David’s Uncle Axel overhears him talking to Rosalind telepathically; David speaks out loud to help make the messages clearer. Uncle Axel does not reveal David’s secret but urges him to never tell anyone or speak out loud while communicating in this way. David does not fully understand but knows he’s right, and he asks Rosalind and the other children to keep their secret. The agreement solidifies them as a group.

Several leaders of the Fringes are captured, including someone who looks exactly like Joseph. David cannot take his eyes off the man, and the man seems to recognize him. The man is later revealed to be Joseph’s brother, who was banished to the Fringes due to his long arms and legs. David continues visiting Sophie and teaches her what he learns, including how Waknuk was once known as Labrador, that the sea is 300 miles away, and that there are only 300 years of recorded history since Tribulation. Two books survived the times of the Old People, including the Bible and Repentances; all other history is gleaned through muddled oral history. Humanity is on an arduous climb toward God’s good graces after being punished for its sins. The way to ascend is through ensuring perfection in all living things.

A boy named Alan sees Sophie’s footprint while they are wading in a stream. David pummels him until Sophie knocks him out with a rock. They run to Sophie’s home, and Sophie’s parents decide they must leave Waknuk. David begs to join them, but they refuse. Sophie gives him a lock of her hair and kisses him, and when David returns home, he finds his father with the inspector, irate that David was spending time with a Blasphemy. Joseph punishes him physically. David feels violated and guilty. The next day, he hears that Sophie and her family were captured.

When David tells Uncle Axel that he wants to run away, he is warned that any place would be worse than Waknuk. Uncle Axel used to be a sailor and has seen the south. Beyond the Badlands is a place where only gigantic plants grow, and beyond that, everything is desolate. Further south, other cultures exist, each with its own language and views on Deviations and the true image. Uncle Axel says that it is impossible to know who is right. He knows that David will soon realize his telepathic abilities are considered a Deviation. His descriptions suggest that a nuclear apocalypse took place on the eastern coast of the United States.

Petra, David’s baby sister, is born. As is customary, nobody speaks of the baby until she is inspected. Emily’s sister, Harriet, arrives with her own newborn. She confesses that it has a small deviation and asks Emily if she can trade babies to pass the inspection. Emily refuses, and when Joseph finds out, he accuses Harriet of blasphemy. Harriet protests that the world is cruel, and God would never condemn a child. The next day, she is found dead. David becomes petrified of being killed and seeks Uncle Axel’s counsel. Uncle Axel suggests that Tribulation may not have been caused by God, but by the Old People. He believes that humanity’s gift is the mind, and David’s ability to speak telepathically may signify an evolution. It should be honed but hidden for the sake of his safety. David and the other telepaths decide to introduce themselves by name. Doing so solidifies the group further. One of them, Michael, begins attending school in another district. He brings back new information about ways of doing things, history, and the world outside Waknuk. The group passes unnoticed for six more years.

Two bad seasons instill doubt in Waknuk. Uncle Axel states that strange winds from the Badlands cause more Deviant births (likely due to radiation). A year later, Petra is six and demonstrates telepathic abilities when she sends out a distress call as she is drowning. David and Rosalind rush to her. Someone spots them, which raises suspicion as to how they knew where to find Petra, but they are able to explain it away. When one of the telepaths, Anne, decides to marry Alan, everyone else protests, fearing for their safety. Anne marries Alan anyway, and months later, Alan is found dead. It is later revealed that Uncle Axel shot him to protect David. When Anne hears this news, she ends her own life. She leaves a note revealing all the telepaths, but her sister, Rachel, finds it. The event leaves everyone anxious. David and Rosalind fall in love and begin an affair, which they cannot reveal to their feuding families.

During a formidable crop season, Petra calls out in distress again, this time reaching everyone. They congregate unintentionally around Petra and are seen by a man. He inquires how they knew where to find her and is suspicious. David decides to teach Petra how to hone her abilities, and after a few days, she can control her thought-shapes, although they are still immensely powerful. The same night, David awakens to find out that Sally and Katherine have been taken, and he and Petra leave immediately. They meet Rosalind in the woods. Michael, who is part of the search party, attempts to lead them astray. Katherine is tortured until she reveals everything about David, Petra, and Rosalind.

Petra starts communicating with someone who lives in Sealand, and she describes a city like the one in David’s dreams. When David hears that his dream is of a real and current place, he is amazed. Sealand people can all use thought-pictures and live in a sort of unity that “normal” people could never understand.

David and the others are pursued, retreat into the woods, and are soon accosted by Fringe people. They take David, Rosalind, and Petra to their encampment to meet their leader, Joseph’s brother (Gordon). David hears about how they view the people of Waknuk as the true sinners because they resist change. The Sealand woman preaches telepathically about how her race is superior, saying the Old People brought Tribulation upon themselves and are only half-humans who should not be imitated. Her words sound hauntingly similar to the Waknuk doctrine. At the encampment, Gordon takes an interest in Rosalind. He banishes David, but he is soon found by Sophie. She takes him back to her cave at the encampment. She is ragged and admits she loves Gordon.

Sophie offers to kill the man guarding Rosalind and Petra and brings them back to her cave. They wait with David until the Sealand woman arrives. Michael’s group approaches the encampment, and a massive battle of arrows and gunshots ensues. David watches as his father, Gordon, and Sophie are all shot dead. A large flying machine descends, releasing sticky webs that suffocate the battlers to death. The webs cover Michael and those in the cave, but the Sealand woman instructs them not to struggle. She arrives in a white suit and sprays them with a mist that frees the glue, and there is a moment of sheer joy as she embraces Petra. When David and Rosalind realize that everyone on the battlefield is dead, the Sealand woman explains that it is necessary to kill those who resist change to preserve the superior race. Michael decides to stay behind and find his own way to the Sealand with Rachel, and the others fly off. They soon approach the city, and it looks just as David dreamed. He and Petra share a moment of hope, and Petra’s excitement overbears everyone as the sound of a buzzing, thinking-together city awaits them.