Science Fiction: The Illustrated Encyclopedia Entry for Babel-17

Babel-17 comes from a time when SF writers like Delany felt they could conquer the literary world. It is perhaps the brightest of all Delany's novels, intriguingly examining sex roles (the protagonist is a woman) and language (as the title hints, the tale is about a weapon that works as a language disintegrator). Like all his early work, the tale overflows with mythopoetic vigor and material. There are Space Opera shenanigans, romantic plots, sophisticated debates, and entrancing characters: it is a cornucopia.

Last updated: Jan 21 1996 at 15:40

Forrest L Norvell