reincarnation in novels

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shamguy4

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what do you guys think of reincarnation in books?
I had a cool idea for a twist in my book which was crazy and from left field...

is it considered weird? or does it depend on the context?

I read only one book once where the main character turns out to be a reincarnation of an old warrior and saves the day....
it was ok and interesting...

is it considered a religious thing?

have not been here in a bit.... cool new theme for the website.
 
I do not know how it is considered by general readership, but when I have seen reincarnation in fiction it is usually implied reincarnation such as Cloud Atlas. Not quite literal, but certainly something of the sort is going on.

Edit: I probably should have specified 'science fiction' when I said fiction. As Brian's comment points out, it may be common in the genres I read less of.
 
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Hell, the Wheel of Time gargantua all began with reincarnations!! But I'd say go for it, could add an element of 'known' mystery (can't think of a better way to put that... but the fact that the one reincarnated might have the memories and abilities but not necessarily know where they came from, initially) and you could work wonders with relationships of old, becoming new. (Gordon Bennett, not doing well at expressing myself tonight. Where's that beer?)
 
In Katharine Kerr's Deverry series there are many flashbacks to the main characters in many different incarnations.

Then there are books like Mirage, by Louise Cooper, and the Fortress series by C. J. Cherryh, where the spirit of a great warrior is summoned back from the dead and made flesh again, which is a different kind of reincarnation than being reborn as an infant and having to go through the whole business of growing up. (Although neither remembers his past life initially, and Tristan in the Fortress books is like a child in a man's body who has to relearn practically everything. Even things like rain are new to him. But he learns very quickly and memories of some things come back to him all at once, so he doesn't remain like a child for very long, although he does retain a childlike innocence until the end when he remembers who he was.)

So there are different ways of handling it. If it's a series of rebirths, then it's usually tied up with religion. If a person is re-incarnated as in re-embodied, then it's usually magic. And whether it works depends on how well it is integrated into the plot and how it fits in the world of the story.
 
It's not "strange" at all. Watch "Dead Again," a Kenneth Brannagh film. I loved that reincarnation story.

Cloud Atlas and The Fountain were a bit "out there" for me, to be honest.

I am currently shopping a short speculative story that I've written where it's been proven (scientifically) that we have souls and that they do reincarnate and mankind has learned how to "tag" souls. So, you are born and "scanned" and everyone knows who you were in a past life. My piece takes place in a boy's "home" where they send children who have been awful people in past incarnations (e.g. murderers and such).

I've read a few SFF pieces that delve into this in a less "ethereal" way than something like Cloud Atlas or The Fountain.

From what I've read, it's both spiritual and cultural. The whole East Indian caste system is kind of built around that, no? Someone here will probably have better articulation of this. You're born into a certain caste and there you must stay because that's what position you were born into. If you're good and pay your dues, you might be born further up the ole social ladder next time. I believe that Hindus, for example, don't believe in conversion because even if you are the lowliest of Hindus (untouchables in India, for example), at least you were born into the religion and are special because of that. Modern "takes" obviously overlook this: hari krishnas, etc.

Ian Stevenson had some pretty interesting research going on about reincarnation. I read it quite a while ago. It's where I got the idea for my story. He investigated cases where children remembered past lives and tried to find the families of those children, etc.

http://www.near-death.com/experiences/reincarnation01.html

I'm not saying his work is infallible, but it's interesting to read.
 
There's been a lot of reincarnation in novels and Science Fiction.
Some of it has been disguised as Solipsism.
Robert Heinlein had that to some extent in a lot of his work but it was most evident in the final years.
I think he believed in Solipsism, but some of his writing seemed to me to be more about the possibility of reincarnation. Possibly multiple past identities within one life.
 
I think reincarnation is fine as long as your world building supports the possibility of reincarnation. If that makes sense ;)
 
Yeah I dont see an issue with it ether. Depending HEAVILY on how its done. I gave up on one fantasy series (I think it was a series, it may have just been one book) because one of the MCs who was being toted around by an agent and presented as The Lord Reincarnate, actually believed his scam and kept hiding sack-cloth under his suits and starving himself to prove his holiness to... well it wast clear who, and his manager was a bitch, and the plot was no where to be found... so it had other issues than what I felt at the time to be a tich sacrilegious, but was probably social commentary going over my head.
 
One thing you can look at is transmigration of souls. It's similar in aspect to reincarnation, and is present in some of the European mythologies, particularly Celtic ones. All part of the larger Indo-European culture.

As ever, ground it in your story and make it believable in context, and I doubt it'll be questioned.
 
It's only a real world religious issue if the reader feels your story is propaganda to convince them to believe in it in the real world as their own belief. As a story element it's fine, as is atheism. I disagree with any supposed fiction deliberately designed to promote an Atheist or particular viewpoint, which isn't the same at all as the writers religion or philosophy colouring the morality of characters or plot. Lots of great stories have re-incarnation.
 
Hi,

Best example I can think of is Michael Moorcock's eternal champion. All of them from Elrick of Melniborne to Hawkmoon to Corum of the Silver Hand are reincarnations. Though only Erikose knew of the other incarnations.

Cheers, Greg.
 
ZombieWife said:
It's not "strange" at all. Watch "Dead Again," a Kenneth Brannagh film. I loved that reincarnation story.
Click to expand...

One of my favorite movies! :D It was my first thought when I saw the question (though I don't know if it's also a book or not).

I think, as others have said, that if your world includes reincarnation, it's perfectly reasonable and could make some quite interesting plots.
 
The first I thought of was LOTR. What interests me is how reincarnation has changed the character.
 
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