Out of the Silent Planet tells the story of Dr. Elwin Ransom, a philologist who is kidnapped by an evil scientist and taken to the planet Mars (called Malacandra) to be sacrificed, but he escapes and discovers an alien world full of unique intelligent races such as the Hrossa, Sorn, and Pfifltriggi, who live under the supervision of a divine entity (Oyarsa) and interact with Ransom to uncover the mystery of the ‘Silent Planet’ (Terra) that is cut off from the universe, forcing him to understand cosmic evil and beauty that far exceeds his understanding of Earth. Ransom learns about the truth of the cosmos and Earth's role in it, before he finally manages to return to Earth with a new understanding of a greater reality and human evil.