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Babel (full title: Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution) was written by American novelist R.F. Kuang and published in 2022
. A fusion of historical fiction, fantasy, speculative fiction, and alternate history, Babel follows Robin Swift as he is taken from his native China to study the art of silver-working at Babel, Oxford University's prestigious Royal Institute of Translation. However, Babel is a text of dissonance and contradictions, and Robin soon begins to grapple with the moral implications of his affiliation with Oxford. A primary focus of the text is the ways in which personal identities are shaped by, and entangled with, societal power structures. Those in power define who belongs and who is deemed an "other." The novel examines how individual identities, particularly those of minorities, are often co-opted to serve the interests of the majority and, in Babel's case, support colonial expansion.Kuang intricately explores themes of imperialism, capitalism, and colonialism, along with the role that complicity plays in upholding these systems. She also delves into the concept of revolution, and asks readers to consider whether violence is a necessary means of resistance or if non-violent rebellion is a better way to achieve lasting change. At its core, the novel is a true work of academia, but it is as much about the moral responsibility to bear witness and to dissent in times of great injustice as it is about language and history.
Read a full book summary, an in-depth character analysis of Robin Swift, and explanations of famous quotes from Babel.
