Nightfall

Name: Nightfall
ISBN: 9787536452220

罗伯特·西尔弗伯格 / Isaac Asimov / Ran LongsenSichuan Science and Technology Press2003

3.9

Series: World Science Fiction Masters Series
ISBN: 9787536452220

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Summary

Nightfall began as a short story by Isaac Asimov published in 1941. Written at the invitation of editor John W. Campbell and inspired by Emerson's remark about the stars being visible only once in a thousand years, the story was voted the best science fiction short story of all time by the Science Fiction Writers of America in 1968. In 1990, Asimov collaborated with Robert Silverberg to expand it into a novel; the Chinese edition was published in 2003 by Sichuan Science and Technology Press as part of the World Science Fiction Masters Series. The story takes place on Kalgash (also rendered Lagash), a planet with six suns. The six suns rise and set on their own cycles, and its inhabitants almost never experience true night or see a sky full of stars. Astronomers at Saro University calculate that every 2,049 years a special astronomical event occurs: all six suns are eclipsed at once, plunging the planet into darkness for several hours and revealing the Stars for the first time. This prediction coincides with ancient religious records of doomsday and is corroborated by relics of an ancient civilization unearthed by archaeologists. Rational scientific deduction unfolds alongside the exploitation of public panic by religious forces such as the Apostles of Light and the mystery cults, and civilization wavers between truth and fear. The novel proceeds roughly in three parts: scientists discover and predict the eclipse; darkness falls, and science and religion clash head-on; after the darkness, society descends into madness and chaos. Silverberg shifts the focus from the original's spectacle to the contest between faith and reason, portraying the desolation of scientists who possess the truth yet are powerless against ignorance, and warning readers through extreme consequences: science becomes true power only when it is widely understood.

Editor's review

一个从不知黑夜为何物的世界，每隔两千年才熄灯几小时——阿西莫夫的短篇只用这个设定就写成了一部经典。西尔弗伯格的长篇扩写在骨架上完整保留了原作，却把镜头从「仰望星空」的震撼挪到了「人如何面对真相」的角力上：科学家算出了末日般的天象，宗教势力却更快地攥住了恐惧。本书最耐人寻味的地方不在天文学，而在社会：真理并不自动获胜，理性的声音常常敌不过一句末日宣判。文明一夜之间倒退的结局令人压抑，但也正因如此才形成警示。书中关于六颗太阳的运转、日食的推算都有细节支撑，硬核设定与人性戏码交替推进，读来既有科幻的宏大，也有寓言式的锋利。对于读过原作短篇的读者，本书可以看到同一个创意在两种笔法下的差异；对于初次接触的读者，它是一本合格的「科幻大师入门课」。2003 年四川科学技术出版社「世界科幻大师丛书」版本由冉隆森翻译，是这一故事在中文世界流传最广的版本。

Who it's for

A good fit for

喜欢阿西莫夫、西尔弗伯格等科幻大师经典作品的读者
对「文明如何面对未知与恐惧」这类社会寓言情有独好的读者
想从短篇经典延伸阅读长篇扩写本、比较改编得失的人
对天文学设定和硬科幻推理有兴趣的中学生及以上读者

Not a good fit for

期待快节奏太空冒险、星际战争场面的读者
偏好轻松喜剧或温情故事、不喜压抑结局的读者
希望读到独立全新故事、不愿读「旧作扩写」的读者

Reading tips

先读阿西莫夫 1941 年短篇原作，再读长篇版，更容易体会扩写的取舍
留意书中关于六颗太阳周期与日食推算的细节，它是全书冲突的支点
把宗教与科学的对撞放在现实历史语境中理解，会读到更深的警示意味
全书按「发现—降临—崩溃」三段推进，可按部阅读并阶段回顾

About the publisher

Sichuan Science and Technology Press China · Founded in 1982

Sichuan Science and Technology Press features science and technology, popular science, and science fiction publishing, while also covering agricultural technology and medical and health books. In science fiction, the press has continued to release works by Liu Cixin, including The Wandering Earth: Selected Short Stories of Liu Cixin, boxed sets of Arthur C. Clarke's science fiction classics, and masterworks such as Ringworld, Snow Crash, and Minus Zero, organized into series including the Chinese Science Fiction Cornerstone Series and the World Science Fiction Masters Series. In popular science, classics such as George Gamow's One Two Three... Infinity reflect its orientation toward public science communication. Its author resources in the library include Liu Cixin, Yao Haijun, and Cheng Xi, among other science fiction and popular science editors and translators; the library contains 190 titles, classified mainly as popular science, science fiction, quality fiction, and foreign literature. Public information is limited, and the above is summarized only from the library's titles and existing profile.

FAQ

《日暮》是阿西莫夫写的还是西尔弗伯格写的？

原始短篇由阿西莫夫 1941 年创作，1990 年他邀请西尔弗伯格把短篇扩写成长篇小说，因此长篇版属于两人合作，西尔弗伯格承担主要写作。

没读过原作短篇能直接读长篇版吗？

可以。长篇版保留了短篇的核心框架，世界观与设定在正文中有完整交代，不需要先读原作也能顺利进入故事。

这本书和中文版《夜幕低垂》是同一本吗？

是同一部作品的不同译名。英文原名 Nightfall，中国大陆常译《日暮》，台湾地区译本名为《夜幕低垂》，内容为同一个长篇故事。

书中的行星叫卡尔盖什还是拉盖什？

两种译名都见于中文资料，指同一颗拥有六颗太阳的行星，不同译本和介绍文章用字不一，不影响阅读。

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About the author

罗伯特·西尔弗伯格 Author

Robert Silverberg is a prominent American science-fiction writer, born in 1935 and known for his intricate plotting and finely crafted prose. Prolific in his early years, he later turned to work of greater literary depth; his representative novel Dying Inside is a typical text from this transitional period, exploring themes such as consciousness, solitude, and the boundaries of human nature. Silverberg's writing spans space opera, social science fiction, and psychological science fiction, and he excels at portraying inner conflict within grand settings, with concise language rich in imagery. He has won the Hugo and Nebula Awards multiple times and received the title of Grand Master from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2004, holding an important place in science-fiction literature. The library currently holds one of his works, Dying Inside, classified under foreign literature, offering readers a glimpse of his creative range.

Isaac Asimov Author · American · 1920–1992

Isaac Asimov (1920–1992) was a Russian-born American writer and professor of biochemistry, and one of the representative figures of the Golden Age of science fiction. Born in Petrovichi, Russia, he moved to the United States with his parents at the age of three. He earned a doctorate in chemistry from Columbia University and later taught at Boston University. His writing centered on science fiction, with representative works including the Foundation series and the Robot series; he also proposed the far-reaching "Three Laws of Robotics." Over his lifetime he wrote nearly five hundred books, covering science fiction, popular science, and other fields. This site holds three of his works, including The Complete Short Stories of Isaac Asimov (4 volumes), The Complete Short Stories of Isaac Asimov 1: The Last Question (2 volumes), and The Complete Short Stories of Isaac Asimov 2: The Bicentennial Man (2 volumes). Most are classified under premium fiction and science fiction, reflecting the enduring influence of his short stories among Chinese readers.

Ran Longsen Author

Ran Longsen (Chinese name 冉隆森) is an author about whom publicly available information is currently limited; details such as nationality and dates of birth and death are not recorded in the existing materials. As far as the library's holdings show, one work appears under this name, titled Ri Mu (Dusk), which is classified under premium fiction and science fiction. This categorization suggests that Ran Longsen's writing engages with science fiction and takes a novelistic narrative approach, and its placement among premium fiction indicates a certain readability and genre character. Because verifiable biographical information, author statements, and critical commentary are scarce, it is difficult at present to make a more specific judgment about the formation of his writing style, thematic preferences, or overall creative trajectory, nor can it be confirmed whether works other than Ri Mu exist. For readers wishing to learn about this author, the most direct route at this stage is still to read Ri Mu itself and experience its narrative manner and science-fictional conceptions through the text; a fuller picture of the author awaits the supplementation of public materials in the future.