Introduction to A Parallel Dimension Story
Ray Cummings published “Phantoms of Reality” in the very first issue of Astounding Stories of Super-Science in 1930. The story arrived at a moment when pulp science fiction was shifting away from pure adventure in the Burroughs style and edging toward something that tried, at least occasionally, to sound scientific. Hard sci-fi, basically. Or what counted as “hard” back then, even if much of it now feels cheerfully daft.
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Plot Summary of Phantoms Of Reality
Charles Wilson, a Wall Street clerk in 1929 New York, receives an invitation from his friend Captain Derek Mason, a mysterious British military officer and amateur scientist. Derek reveals he has discovered a method to access another dimension; a parallel world existing in the same physical space as our own but at a different vibratory rate. This realm, populated by humans who speak English and shadow our civilization, exists in a more primitive state.
Derek has fallen in love with Hope, a young woman from this other world, and asks Charles to join him on a dangerous mission. The parallel realm is in political turmoil: a corrupt king must choose between two potential queens, and the oppressed working class stands ready to revolt.
The Setting of Vintage Science Fiction
The story’s 1929 setting is significant. Written during the final months before the Great Depression, it captures both the optimism of the Jazz Age and an undercurrent of unease about modern urban life. Charles, who complains about being “tired of this humdrum world that we call civilisation,” sounds like plenty of workers who felt ground down by modern corporate life.
Cummings also weaves surprisingly blunt political ideas into the plot. The conflict between the oppressed workers and the corrupt crimson nobles mirrors labour disputes of the period. Yet the ending sidesteps genuine revolution. Instead of workers gaining power, a more “enlightened” monarch takes control. The message leans conservative, even if the earlier sections lean the other way.
As a whole, Phantoms of Reality sits comfortably in the early “parallel worlds” subgenre. It appeared long before writers attempted more complex or scientific treatments of alternate dimensions. Cummings’s fourth dimension isn’t scientific at all by modern standards. It behaves more like a fantasy kingdom than a true alternate universe. His explanation relies on vibratory rates and the idea that matter can shift between states depending on how fast it “vibrates.” It’s not convincing at all, but it does give him an excuse to send Charles and Derek into a medieval drama without needing a time machine.
The parallel world lets Cummings comment on both modern capitalism and a longing for a simpler past. He calls the realm “primitive, where ours is civilised,” though he clearly admires its culture. You can sense the desire to escape city life for a place where people supposedly live with more purpose.
Narrative Style
Cummings chooses a first-person narrator, which usually brings extra intimacy, though Charles remains oddly passive for most of the adventure. That’s fairly typical for this kind of story; even H. G. Wells wrote floppy passive characters now and then. The frame narrative, where Charles tells his story while expecting no one to believe him, was a common pulp move. It tries to make everything sound more credible, even though it’s the opposite of believable.
The prose jumps between rapid action and slow pseudo-scientific chatter. The long section describing the “spiritual” music in the other world—rising, falling, and shimmering away—shows Cummings trying to capture wonder. However, his explanations of vibration theory often feel like someone talking themselves into a headache.
Author: Ray Cummings
Ray Cummings (1887–1957) wrote an enormous amount of pulp fiction, so much so that fans often call him one of the “founding fathers” of early sci-fi. Before becoming a writer, he worked as an assistant to Thomas Edison. That connection helped him sound authoritative when throwing around scientific jargon. Cummings also worked for Timely Comics, which later became Marvel, and contributed to several early superhero stories.
My Thoughts
What strikes me most today is how clearly the story reflects male wish-fulfilment. Charles escapes desk work and steps into a world where courage and sword-fighting matter more than sales reports. Derek reclaims a throne with the help of modern gadgets. Meanwhile, Hope—promised as the future queen—barely influences anything and mostly needs rescuing. She feels less like a character and more like a reward.
Another interesting thread is the uncomfortable colonial attitude running through the plot. Charles and Derek arrive with superior knowledge, take charge of local events, and help remake the kingdom. Derek literally becomes the ruler, as though the society desperately needed someone from 1929 Britain to set things straight.
The story also taps into the question of authenticity. Derek tells Charles he might find “power and riches—and perhaps a fair lady,” as though none of those things could happen in Manhattan. Only in a parallel world can men succeed through physical strength or individual bravery. It’s not a bad fantasy, but it says a lot about the fears and hopes of the era.
More complex treatments of parallel worlds came later. Philip K. Dick’s The Man in the High Castle (1962) deals with alternate history in a far more thoughtful way. Even the game BioShock Infinite (2013) feels like a sophisticated echo of Cummings’s setup, though obviously miles ahead in writing and complexity.
Wrapping Up
“Phantoms of Reality” doesn’t shine as a piece of literature. The prose is serviceable, the characters thin, and the politics tangled. Yet the story offers a snapshot of pulp science fiction during a period when readers wanted both escape and a sense that science might unlock strange new realms. It captures that feeling well enough: ordinary people escaping their daily routines to find adventure, danger, and a chance to matter somewhere else.
If you’re looking for more, click the links below:
Other stories from Astounding Stories
More early tales with parallel worlds:
Another vintage pulp magazine:
Science Wonder Stories, Vol. 1, No. 2
Original Astounding Stories issues at the Internet Archive.
Disclaimer: The story featured on this page is in the public domain. However, the original authorship, magazine credits, and any associated illustrations remain the property of their respective creators, illustrators and publishers. This material is provided for informational and educational purposes only and may not be used for commercial sale.