It also resembles a few preceding science fiction novels which deal with how languages shape the political and cultural stratum of societies, such as The Languages of Pao by Jack Vance or Anthem by Ayn Rand. Language as a weapon was adapted as a plot device in Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash. Le Guin, Embassytown by China Miéville, "In Luna Bore Coda" by Joshua Nilles, and, more evidently, the short story " Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang. The novel deals with several issues related to the peculiarities of language, how conditions of life shape the formation of words and meaning, and how words themselves can shape the actions of people.ĭelany's novel influenced a generation of writers: Native Tongue by Suzette Haden Elgin, The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Babel-17 is discovered to be a language that not only helps you understand the enemy, but become the enemy. Their ability to speak Babel-17 has altered their minds and we learn that it was Rydra who was the traitor on board the ship. While their bodies are present, their minds seem elsewhere.
Rydra and The Butcher, who already unknowingly spoke Babel-17, are rescued but seem incredibly altered. While on the planet, Rydra meets a man called "The Butcher" who does not use the word "I." After teaching The Butcher the word "I," Rydra, The Butcher, and her crew leave the planet but are attacked once they disembark. After escaping the predicted attack, Rydra and her crew are captured by a nearby planet. During their mission, Rydra realizes there is a traitor aboard the ship. Rydra realizes it is a language in and of itself. Initially Babel-17 is thought to be a code used by enemy agents. As her understanding of the language increases, she is able to predict where the next attack will be and gathers a team to go to the predicted location of the attack. After several attacks have been made by the invaders who speak Babel-17, she soon realizes the potential of the language to change one's thought process and provide speakers with certain powers, and she is recruited by her government to discover how the enemy is infiltrating and sabotaging strategic sites. Chinese starship captain, linguist, poet, and telepath Rydra Wong begins to learn the language. Plot summary īabel-17 is a language that can be used as a weapon utilized by enemy invaders during an interstellar war. ĭelany hoped to have Babel-17 originally published as a single volume with the novella Empire Star, but this did not happen until a 2001 reprint. It was joint winner of the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1967 (with Flowers for Algernon) and was also nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1967. Delany in which the Sapir–Whorf hypothesis (that language influences thought and perception) plays an important part.
Babel-17 is a 1966 science fiction novel by American writer Samuel R.
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