Flybyreader

“But what is the opposite of fidelity?' asked Professor Playfair. He was approaching the end of his dialitic; now he needed only to draw it to a close with a punch. 'Betrayal. Translation means doing violence upon the original, it means warping and distorting it for foreign, unintended eyes. So, where does that leave us? How can we conclude except by acknowledging that an act of translation is always an act of betrayal?”
― R.F. Kuang, Babel

“Words and phrases you think are carved into your bones can disappear in no time.”
― R.F. Kuang, Babel

“Mankind is inherently inclined towards cooperation," Holmes said. It is how we create societies and moral consensus. We want to agree with one another, on the whole. Thus, if one of us insists a certain thing is true, and maintains his standpoint in the face of all opposition, others will eventually come around to his way of thinking.”
― James Lovegrove, Sherlock Holmes & the Christmas Demon

“After all, we’re here to make the unknown known, to make the other familiar. We’re here to make magic with words.”
― R.F. Kuang, Babel