Books like Babel-17 by Samuel R. Delany
In an interstellar conflict, one side invents the language Babel‑17, a linguistic weapon that rewrites cognition and makes its speaker a reluctant traitor. Starship captain Rydra Wong discovers the danger when learning the tongue, and is subsequently enlisted to investigate how the adversaries infiltrate and sabotage key sites. The story follows Wong’s struggle to navigate reality altered by Babel‑17 while confronting the ethical and strategic implications of a language that can be used for weaponization.
First publish date: 1966
Genre: Science Fiction/Space Opera
Authors: Samuel R. Delany
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