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Mockingbird (1980 novel)
Encyclopedia
Mockingbird is a science fiction
novel by Walter Tevis
, published in 1980 by Doubleday. It was nominated for a Nebula Award for Best Novel
.
, he became aware that the level of literacy among his students was falling at an alarming rate. That observation gave him the idea for this novel, set in a grim and decaying New York City of the 25th Century: the population is declining, no one can read, and robots rule over the drugged, illiterate humans. With the birth rate dropping, the end of the species seems a possibility.
, Spofforth, an android who has lived for centuries yet yearns to die. The novel opens with his failed attempt at suicide. Spofforth brings a teacher, Paul Bentley, to New York. Bentley has taught himself to read after a Rosetta Stone
–like discovery of a film with words matching those in a children's primer. Bentley says he could teach others to read, but Spofforth instead gives him a job of decoding the written titles in ancient silent films. At a zoo, Bentley meets Mary Lou, explains the concept of reading to her, and the two embark on a path toward literacy. Spofforth responds by sending Bentley to prison for the crime of reading, and takes Mary Lou as an unwilling housemate. The novel then follows Bentley's journey of discovery after his escape from prison, culminating in his eventual reunion with Mary Lou and their assistance with Spofforth's suicide.
commented, "I've read other novels extrapolating the dangers of computerization, but Mockingbird stings me, the writer, the hardest. The notion, the possibility, that people might indeed lose the ability, and worse, the desire to read, is made acutely probable."
When a new edition was published in 1999, with a Jonathan Lethem
introduction, Pat Holt reviewed:
Reviewing the 1999 edition, James Sallis
declared that "Mockingbird collapses the whole of mankind's perverse, self-destructive, indomitable history, cruelty and kindness alike, into its black-humor narrative of a robot's death wish."
(1980). The San Francisco Chronicle called Mockingbird "an unofficial sequel to Fahrenheit 451
, for its central event and symbol is the rediscovery of reading."
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel by Walter Tevis
Walter Tevis
Walter Stone Tevis was an American novelist and short story writer. Three of his six novels were adapted into major films: The Hustler, The Color of Money and The Man Who Fell to Earth...
, published in 1980 by Doubleday. It was nominated for a Nebula Award for Best Novel
Nebula Award for Best Novel
Winners of the Nebula Award for Best Novel, awarded by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. The stated year is that of publication; awards are given in the following year.- Winners and other nominees :...
.
Concept
While Tevis was teaching English literature at Ohio UniversityOhio University
Ohio University is a public university located in the Midwestern United States in Athens, Ohio, situated on an campus...
, he became aware that the level of literacy among his students was falling at an alarming rate. That observation gave him the idea for this novel, set in a grim and decaying New York City of the 25th Century: the population is declining, no one can read, and robots rule over the drugged, illiterate humans. With the birth rate dropping, the end of the species seems a possibility.
Plot
A central character is the dean of New York UniversityNew York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, Spofforth, an android who has lived for centuries yet yearns to die. The novel opens with his failed attempt at suicide. Spofforth brings a teacher, Paul Bentley, to New York. Bentley has taught himself to read after a Rosetta Stone
Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone is an ancient Egyptian granodiorite stele inscribed with a decree issued at Memphis in 196 BC on behalf of King Ptolemy V. The decree appears in three scripts: the upper text is Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, the middle portion Demotic script, and the lowest Ancient Greek...
–like discovery of a film with words matching those in a children's primer. Bentley says he could teach others to read, but Spofforth instead gives him a job of decoding the written titles in ancient silent films. At a zoo, Bentley meets Mary Lou, explains the concept of reading to her, and the two embark on a path toward literacy. Spofforth responds by sending Bentley to prison for the crime of reading, and takes Mary Lou as an unwilling housemate. The novel then follows Bentley's journey of discovery after his escape from prison, culminating in his eventual reunion with Mary Lou and their assistance with Spofforth's suicide.
Reviews
Anne McCaffreyAnne McCaffrey
Anne Inez McCaffrey was an American-born Irish writer, best known for her Dragonriders of Pern series. Over the course of her 46 year career she won a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award...
commented, "I've read other novels extrapolating the dangers of computerization, but Mockingbird stings me, the writer, the hardest. The notion, the possibility, that people might indeed lose the ability, and worse, the desire to read, is made acutely probable."
When a new edition was published in 1999, with a Jonathan Lethem
Jonathan Lethem
Jonathan Allen Lethem is an American novelist, essayist and short story writer. His first novel, Gun, with Occasional Music, a genre work that mixed elements of science fiction and detective fiction, was published in 1994. It was followed by three more science fiction novels...
introduction, Pat Holt reviewed:
- "Real" life for humans has become so mechanical and without purpose that a great despondency has settled on the declining population. And because reading disappeared centuries before (perhaps during the era known as the "Death of Oil"), no one has a sense of history, of a shared past or of time altogether... The book often feels like a combination 1984Nineteen Eighty-FourNineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell is a dystopian novel about Oceania, a society ruled by the oligarchical dictatorship of the Party...
and Brave New WorldBrave New WorldBrave New World is Aldous Huxley's fifth novel, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Set in London of AD 2540 , the novel anticipates developments in reproductive technology and sleep-learning that combine to change society. The future society is an embodiment of the ideals that form the basis of...
, with a dash of the movie Escape from New YorkEscape from New YorkEscape from New York is a 1981 American science fiction action film directed and scored by John Carpenter. He co-wrote the screenplay with Nick Castle. The film is set in the near future in a crime-ridden United States that has converted Manhattan Island in New York City into a maximum security...
thrown in. Children, raised in dormitories from birth, are taught that servicing personal needs is primary and that looking directly at others or talking in a companionable way is considered "invasion of privacy" and an official "Mistake." Platitudes are enforced as strategically as law - "quick sex is best," people are taught (and believe), so there are no couples, no relationships, no families. "Mandatory politeness" is also enforced; the phrase "don't ask; relax" has become so engrained in people's minds that they are uncomfortable questioning anything.
- Into this bleak landscape come three who rebel - one man, one woman and one "Make Nine" robot (who's so advanced he's almost human). Watching the two humans, Bentley and Mary Lou, learn to read is perhaps the most engrossing part of the book. When Bentley first introduces the idea to Mary Lou by reading aloud to her, she stares at him: "Were you saying things that you heard in your mind from just looking at that book?" she asks.
- At first, their ability to decode the strange and ancient letters they uncover is extremely limited, but soon they can decipher such things as the dictionary. It takes them a while to understand that it's not by accident or coincidence that words are grouped together behind certain letters. Often their conclusions about books are refreshingly original. After many readings of the Bible, for example, Bentley decides that Jesus Christ was a "mystical rabbi" and that the meaning of the word Satan is "enemy."
Reviewing the 1999 edition, James Sallis
James Sallis
James Sallis is an American crime writer, poet and musician, best known for his series of novels featuring the character Lew Griffin and set in New Orleans, and for his 2005 novel Drive, which was adapted into a 2011 film of the same name.He is the brother of philosopher John Sallis...
declared that "Mockingbird collapses the whole of mankind's perverse, self-destructive, indomitable history, cruelty and kindness alike, into its black-humor narrative of a robot's death wish."
PBS production
During one of his last televised interviews, Tevis revealed that PBS once planned a production of Mockingbird as a follow-up to its successful adaptation of The Lathe of HeavenThe Lathe of Heaven
The Lathe of Heaven is a 1971 science fiction novel by Ursula K. Le Guin. The plot revolves around a character whose dreams alter reality. The story was first serialized in the American science fiction magazine Amazing Stories. The novel received nominations for the 1972 Hugo and the 1971 Nebula...
(1980). The San Francisco Chronicle called Mockingbird "an unofficial sequel to Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451 is a 1953 dystopian novel by Ray Bradbury. The novel presents a future American society where reading is outlawed and firemen start fires to burn books...
, for its central event and symbol is the rediscovery of reading."