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How slender, how fragile, the foundations of an empire: The Neo-Victorian British Empire of R. F. Kuang’s Babel
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Publicado em agosto de 2022, Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the
Oxford Translators’ Revolution de R. F. Kuang é uma das mais recentes obras de ficção
merecedoras de ser classificadas como neo-vitoriana. Situada numa versão alternativa da
Inglaterra vitoriana, na qual a tradução se transforma num sinónimo de domínio imperial, a
narrativa examina as complexidades da relação colonial, definida por poder, resistência e
subjugação, através da perspetiva usualmente negligenciada do Outro. Como tal, a presente
análise interseta neo-vitorianismo com perspetivas pós-coloniais, desconstruindo os efeitos
desta relação simbiótica por meio da ótica daqueles que vitimiza. A narrativa é centrada no
ponto de vista de Robin Swift, um órfão chinês que é trazido de Cantão para Inglaterra, onde
é preparado e manipulado para um dia entrar no prestigiado Real Instituto de Tradução da
Universidade de Oxford, conhecido informalmente como Babel. Durante o seu tempo
enquanto estudante, Robin aprende que os negócios conduzidos pelo Instituto são nefastos e
intrinsecamente ligados ao imperialismo inglês, enquanto tenta conciliar o seu desejo de
resistir ao Império ao mesmo tempo que deseja pertencer tanto a Babel como à sociedade
vitoriana, uma dualidade que é ilustrada pela sua associação quer com o Instituto, quer com o
seu oposto, a sociedade secreta conhecida por Hermes.
Published in August of 2022, R. F. Kuang’s Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution is a more recent work of fiction befitting the label of neo-Victorian. Set in an alternate version of Victorian Britain, wherein translation becomes synonymous with imperial domination, the narrative examines the complexities of the colonial relationship, defined by power, resistance, and subjugation, through the oftenneglected perspective of the Other. As such, the presently conducted analysis intersects neoVictorianism with postcolonial frameworks, deconstructing the effects of this symbiotic relationship through the perspective of those it victimises. The narrative is centred through the perspective of Robin Swift, a Chinese orphan who is brought from Canton to England, where he is groomed and conditioned to one day attend Oxford’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation, informally known as Babel. During his time as a scholar, Robin comes to learn that the Institute’s dealings are nefarious and indelibly tied to the business of English imperialism, while he struggles to reconcile his desire to resist the Empire while simultaneously desiring to belong in both Babel and Victorian society, a duality that is illustrated by his association with both the Institute and its polar opposite, the secret society known as Hermes.
Published in August of 2022, R. F. Kuang’s Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution is a more recent work of fiction befitting the label of neo-Victorian. Set in an alternate version of Victorian Britain, wherein translation becomes synonymous with imperial domination, the narrative examines the complexities of the colonial relationship, defined by power, resistance, and subjugation, through the oftenneglected perspective of the Other. As such, the presently conducted analysis intersects neoVictorianism with postcolonial frameworks, deconstructing the effects of this symbiotic relationship through the perspective of those it victimises. The narrative is centred through the perspective of Robin Swift, a Chinese orphan who is brought from Canton to England, where he is groomed and conditioned to one day attend Oxford’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation, informally known as Babel. During his time as a scholar, Robin comes to learn that the Institute’s dealings are nefarious and indelibly tied to the business of English imperialism, while he struggles to reconcile his desire to resist the Empire while simultaneously desiring to belong in both Babel and Victorian society, a duality that is illustrated by his association with both the Institute and its polar opposite, the secret society known as Hermes.
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Neo-vitorianismo Pós-colonial Outro racial Imperialismo História alternativa Neo-Victorian Studies Postcolonial Racial Other Imperialism Alternate history