“Violence shows them how much we’re willing to give up…Violence is the only language they understand, because their system of extraction is inherently violent. Violence shocks the system. And the system cannot survive the shock,” (Kuang 397).
Orphaned after a cholera outbreak in Canton, Robin Swift is brought to London by Professor Lovell, a professor at Oxford University. After tutoring Robin in translation for many years, Lovell enrolls Robin into the Royal Institute of Translation, nicknamed Babel, where talented students learn the art of silver-working, a type of magic where words lost in translation are enchanted and power most of Britain, from keeping buildings stable to keeping a kettle hot. But as his studies progress and a chance meeting with a curious stranger from a secret society, and Robin begins questioning Oxford and Babel as an unjust war between Britain and China creeps closer and closer.
Babel has gotten a lot of hype. It has rave reviews, is beloved by many readers, and I understand why. There’s no doubt that a lot of research went into this book and that Kuang fully steeped herself into this world when writing. Babel is also a very intelligent novel, with Kuang’s background (having studied at Oxford and currently studying at Yale) there was no doubt of that happening. But I struggled to see why this book is loved by so many and am disappointed that I didn’t enjoy it more.
I think one problem is that Kuang is a big teller instead of shower, and it’s not that you can’t break the show don’t tell rule sometimes, but when it’s constant it gets annoying. Kuang doesn’t give space for the reader to figure out the themes in her book, she makes sure we know them, but the problem with that is that the themes of the novel should also be obvious to the age group this book is targeted. Colonialism and racism are bad, language can be used as a colonizing tool, these are things readers (and let’s be real, people as a whole) should know. Obviously not everyone does, but I’ll also argue that the people who don’t realize these things are unlikely to pick-up a 500 page book to read to see the errors of their ways.
I read a very good review of Kuang’s other novel Yellowface recently in which the reviewer said: “I think Kuang’s books are fantastic resources for young readers, because she pulls off morally hideous characters so completely that the reader is forced, kicking and screaming, into critical thinking about the narrator. I would give her work to high schoolers and undergrads so that they get a clear, accessible example of how to evaluate a character’s motivations.” While this reviewer is speaking about a protagonist from a different one of Kuang’s novel, it’s just as relevant to Robin who may not be morally hideous but does have his own journey of self-actualization that is done quite well. This isn’t to say that Kuang shouldn’t write for adults, I’ve read some of her other works and clearly many other people adore her as a writer, but the way she writes does tend to be aimed at reader’s who are unable to parse through themes themselves, or those who perhaps haven’t read a book since high school and are looking to get into it again.
I struggled through most of Babel for this reason. I could understand the themes of the novel, so having Kuang tell me exactly what was happening felt like I was being talking down to at times. I thought Robin and his friends were fun to follow, but as another reviewer has said, I saw no real proof of their friendship. Kuang describes that they all became fast bosom buddies but most of the time we see this group interact they’re fighting or silently resenting each other. And while I love a book that utilizes footnotes, the footnotes in Babel felt like a clever way for Kuang to include all her editors made her cut. Much of it was irrelevant.
The book picks up in the last third and shares some vibes with The Secret History, and I understand the slow burn of it. Kuang is building a realization for her character’s before the “necessity of violence” mentioned in the title kicks off, but even the ending wasn’t all that surprising when you really look at it.
I understand the hype and love around Babel, there’s no doubt a lot of care and research went into it and that the book has enlightened and taught many readers as I’m sure Kuang hoped it would. I’d just rather a book show, not tell, me these things and let me analyze and think for myself. Telling isn’t always bad, but you have to give some credit that your readers are smart enough to figure out a book for themselves, or at least believe they’ll do the work and research what they don’t know.
Publication: August 23 2022
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Pages: 544 pages (Hardcover)
Source: Library
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction
My Rating: ⛤⛤⛤.5
Summary:
1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, is brought to London by the mysterious Professor Lovell. There, he trains for years in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Chinese, all in preparation for the day he’ll enroll in Oxford University’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation—also known as Babel. The tower and its students are the world’s center for translation and, more importantly, magic. Silver-working—the art of manifesting the meaning lost in translation using enchanted silver bars—has made the British unparalleled in power, as the arcane craft serves the Empire’s quest for colonization.
For Robin, Oxford is a utopia dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. But knowledge obeys power, and as a Chinese boy raised in Britain, Robin realizes serving Babel means betraying his motherland. As his studies progress, Robin finds himself caught between Babel and the shadowy Hermes Society, an organization dedicated to stopping imperial expansion. When Britain pursues an unjust war with China over silver and opium, Robin must decide . . .
Can powerful institutions be changed from within, or does revolution always require violence?
Sarah O'Connor 