Embassytown in On Paths Unknown

Aug 20, 2012 Cecily rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favourites, colonialism-exploration-empires, scifi-future-speculative-fict, language-related, miscellaneous-fiction

How can a novel about language leave one speechless? In a good way, I hasten to add!

This was the third Mieville I’ve read, and they are all very different in style, content and my liking (or not).

The core idea of this one is language: how minds shape language and how language shapes minds. Wonderful as it was, I can see reasons why some people would hate it, or find it too weird, or just not sci-fi enough. If you don’t delight in polysemy and are not interested in the difference between simile a ...more

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Dec 27, 2010 Brad rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: political, sci-fi, mieville, philosophical, speculative, linguistics

What is Embassytown about?

Embassytown is about reality.
Embassytown is about how we make reality.
Embassytown is about how we speak reality.
Embassytown is reality.
Embassytown is unreal.
Embassytown is about religion.
Embassytown is about the spirit.
Embassytown is about being incorruptible.
Embassytown is about corruption.
Embassytown is corruption.
Embassytown is about the opiated masses.
Embassytown is about what opiates the masses.
Embassytown is about any opiates for any masses.
Embassytown is opiates ...more

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Nov 08, 2013 David Katzman rated it liked it

I'm a huge fan of Kraken . Unfortunately, Embassytown failed to give me the same buzz. Far future sci fi is a tightrope act. As it turns out, this is really more of a fantasy novel set in a distant future. Fantasy sci fi doesn't necessarily include magic, but what it usually does is posit technology without any explanation for its basis in current physics. In other words, fantasy sci-fi usually applies the dictum that any sufficiently advanced technology will be indistinguishable from magic a I'm a huge fan of Kraken . Unfortunately, Embassytown failed to give me the same buzz. Far future sci fi is a tightrope act. As it turns out, this is really more of a fantasy novel set in a distant future. Fantasy sci fi doesn't necessarily include magic, but what it usually does is posit technology without any explanation for its basis in current physics. In other words, fantasy sci-fi usually applies the dictum that any sufficiently advanced technology will be indistinguishable from magic and leaves it at that. Which is fine, nothing wrong with that as a framework for a novel if all other aspects of the novel support the enjoyment of reading it. (And here, I am reacting to this book in a non-postmodern/non-experimental framework. It is, after all, a straightforward narrative with nothing groundbreaking in the structure or style.) The key aspects of narrative that create the experience of a novel are character, plot (storyline plus tension and momentum), themes, and style/tone/use of language. Certainly there is a holistic "other" that that can make a novel compelling regardless of weaknesses in these areas, but I tend to think of that as falling into themes and style. In the case of Embassytown, Miéville lost me on character, plot (especially tension), and style.

The story features one Avice Benner Cho as hero. She left the far-flung human outpost Embassytown as a youth to travel as crew on ships that ply the vaguely-justified faster-than-light spaceways. Humanity has encountered numerous alien species and has varied levels of relationship with them but on balance, relatively peaceful interactions. Overall, the relationships with alien species are those of economic trading partners. Humanity seems to have a centralized government that is somewhere between dictatorship and a Representative Oligarchy, kind of where we stand today. We begin the story flashing forward then back again repeatedly to explain how she has returned to Embassytown where the locals, lead by highly trained genetic twin/clones, trade with an unusual alien species that speaks with two mouths simultaneously. The human ambassadors must be near identical twin/clones in order for them to speak words together to communicate with the aliens called Ariekei.

Kudos for Miéville creating a fantasy novel around linguistics. It was an unusual challenge. But unfortunately that did not make it riveting drama. The first weakness for me was the main character. Avice was uninteresting. Her character was overall flat and without any notable personality traits. I notice this is a trend in books by Miéville. Although I loved Kraken , I found the main character to be a cipher. Here, Avice wasn't so much mysterious as bland. Not unnatural, simply indistinct. I just did not find her compelling or emotionally affective. There were only a few other characters around her sketched in, and there wasn't much to them.

I would also note that while this book has as a central motif, the mysteries of linguistics, I found the central premise of this alien linguistics to be pure fantasy and not based on any recognizable science. You see, there is more to the Ariekei's language than simply two words being spoken simultaneously. There was also (this is a modest spoiler)(view spoiler) For those who don't read the spoiler, I will note that this linguistic issue I found to be a significant flaw in the premise of the story.

Style, I will only touch on that the writing is certainly solid but not outstanding. It's not written in such a way to counterbalance my overall feelings regarding the story. If I contrast Miéville's writing to Jeff VanderMeer's work in City of Saints and Madmen, there's no comparison. VanderMeer is sharp and vibrant whereas Miéville hums along with a balanced equilibrium.

Plot is the main culprit here. Despite the build up to a major cataclysm...it didn't feel as though there was to be a major cataclysm. I found the tension to be low throughout. And that could certainly be associated with various intangibles including not caring emotionally about what happened to the main character. I simply did not experience that intangible sense of concern about what would happen next. And another related flaw I note from both books is that Miéville seems to get caught up in politics. Not high-level politics, I'm saying he gets caught up in the minutiae of local (fictional) politics, stuff that just gets in the way of the flow of the story and drama. I felt at times that Embassytown got bogged down in the political drama of the politicians in such ways that it seemed at times Miéville was attempting to justify various plot points. I found a few plot points illogical here and there such as (view spoiler)

Things Miéville did quite well: creating a feeling of "alienness" and difference. Vive la différence! If anything this theme of the alien other was the most enjoyable aspect of the book. Miéville writes in quite offhand ways about things that are radically different from our current culture, a technique that helps to defamiliarise the mundane. Along those lines, he sets up the malleability of familial structures. A nice thematic, to highlight how so many things we are so ideologically "married to" could evolve dramatically over time. And thus, demonstrating the bankruptcy of so much dogma--religious, cultural and political. I do feel that Miéville's heart is in a good place when it comes to his views on politics and culture. Really, it's not a bad book. I'll call it 3+, if not quite 3.5. It won't prevent me from reading another Miéville. But I think I'll turn back to VanderMeer when I seek out my next hit of literary fantasy. ...more

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Sep 09, 2011 Brian rated it it was amazing

China's brain is a thing of beauty. I don't want to ruin any part of this book by describing even the smallest part of what it is about - just please read this book if you are in love with the written word, and what happens when Language is put in the hands of a Master... ...more

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Apr 13, 2011 Magdelanye rated it it was amazing

Shelves: language-thought-reality, social-commentary, culture-conflict, inner-work, creative-process, existential-crises, fantasy

Does understanding always precede communication,or is communication necessary for understanding?

Jesus Pharotekton! CM takes the absurd to new extremes in this preposterous psychodrama of language and addiction. Relentlessly, he drives the reader into incomprehensible insights, pushing our logic and credibility and imagination Embassytownis like a Russian doll or a Chineses box, or a square egg inscribed with heiroglyphics, or a glimpse of salmon flashing upstream.It is CM's genius to give us a p ...more

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May 12, 2011 pearl rated it really liked it

Shelves: philosophy, science-fiction

I was wary. Afraid, even (Kraken's gotten middling scores on the whole and I've still not read it). But the jacket description of Embassytown effuses: "China Mieville doesn't follow trends: He sets them, relentlessly pushing his own boundaries as a writer--and in the process expanding the boundaries of the entire field."

Well, I read it. And sweet Jesus Christ Pharotekton.

This was not my favorite Mieville, no--that's The Scar, as it always and forever shall be--but this was so, unabashedly, yes, I was wary. Afraid, even (Kraken's gotten middling scores on the whole and I've still not read it). But the jacket description of Embassytown effuses: "China Mieville doesn't follow trends: He sets them, relentlessly pushing his own boundaries as a writer--and in the process expanding the boundaries of the entire field."

Well, I read it. And sweet Jesus Christ Pharotekton.

This was not my favorite Mieville, no--that's The Scar, as it always and forever shall be--but this was so, unabashedly, yes, our man. Here be strange and beautiful creatures; outsider characters; colonialist politics, power struggles, and violent, revolutionary rebirths, remakings; oh and tons of delicious language. Embassytown feels familiar, definitely, like a mash-up of Mieville's previous works, viz. the last two Bas-Lag novels, The Scar and Iron Council. He retreads a similar ground here, or you could say gives choice themes further exploration. Do not be mistaken: familiar, here, is not a bad thing. This is just a distillation of themes.

What faults Embassytown has are forgivable. It starts a bit slow. There is a softly reminiscing quality to the early narration (first! person!), about her childhood, her young adulthood, and I was frankly a little bored by it. Mieville's new space lingo in these parts was also a bit hard to catch onto (though I appreciated the German bits). But it all picks up soon, for better or for worse. Mind you this is a SLIM little number compared to M's other stuff. He strikes a good rhythm here but at the expense of other things, i.e. the characters. Avice Benner Cho is a cool narrator, to be fair (that NAME). But not nearly enough time was given to the people in this book. Everyone felt rather flat and dare I say, too-ordinary? Avice's husband, Scile, is the worst offender. He waxes fervent linguist but leaves too small an impression--he is removed from even Avice's thoughts for too long to be valued. He is no Isaac, nor Bellis. Even Avice herself deserved more, I felt.

But as things are with Mieville, the characters are never the main course. It's the city. It's Embassytown. It's the indigene race of Ariekei and their world that matters. I loved Mieville's attention to these creatures, the detail that is never clinical but forever wondrous and enthusiastic for discovery.

And bloody hell, it's the ideas.

Mieville just wrote a fucking science fiction story about the sociopolitics of language--er philosophy of language--oops I mean linguistics--and what?!

Yes, overall, Embassytown was fun. And whatever faults... look, I've forgotten them already haven't I? Mieville is such an enthusiastic writer and has such refreshing ideas, I'm almost ready to forgive him anything. He writes and it is obvious he loves the shit out of it and that just comes off the page and it doesn't hurt that he does the job well.

Thanks, China, you're an inspiration. I'll be checking Kraken out, soon.
...more

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May 16, 2011 Mark rated it did not like it

This book was not read, but there is no way in the world that I will ever finish it. There is nothing here. No character development, no plot, just empty words. Gobs and gobs and pages and pages of words, meaningless words. Ironic, for a book that's supposed to be about language. ...more

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Feb 21, 2012 Traveller rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sf-fantasy

Review pending

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May 19, 2012 Arun Divakar rated it really liked it

One of the most amazing things in being a social animal is our usage of language. If it were not for this facility of our mind, we would have led a most chaotic life. Even the animals and birds who share the planet with us communicate in their own ways. This was my first foray into a story where language was the soul of the story. China Mieville is an author whose world building skills have found in me a delighted reader through his New Crobuzon. In Embassytown, he creates a world with the same ...more

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Apr 01, 2013 Karl-O rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, language, sci-fi

This book started fine and got somewhat better till the letdown in the last 50 pages. I really liked the premise. The ideas about language, though I doubt the extent to which they are true, were engaging and interesting. However, the writing was boring and in my humble opinion, bad and pretentious. I couldn't but feel disappointed with the book after the cheap ending. I couldn't possibly believe how easy the author thinks it was to train the hosts to use language the way we do. Good questions ca ...more

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