Birthright: The Book of Man
Encyclopedia
Birthright: The Book of Man is a science fiction
novel (or, more exactly, a novel-like series of vignette
s) written by Mike Resnick
, published in 1982. It describes the fictional history of mankind's conquest of the galaxy that serves as environment for a number of the author's other novels.
The book is unrelated to the Birthright of man, a nonfiction collection of quotations compilled by Jeanne Hersch
.
- inhabited by thousands of sentient alien races, which are overpowered and oppressed using whatever tool it takes: economic pressure, diplomatic finesse, or simple military power.
Not all chapters deal with mankind's treatment of aliens; some also cover the "internal" politics that result in a development of the growing human empire from a democracy to a monarchy. But the biggest theme is undeniably the search for the elusive quality that allows mankind to overcome all opposition and manage the unique feat of conquering the entire galaxy. It is never clearly defined but manifests perhaps most succinctly when it also results in the failure of an attempt to cross the void between galaxies.
Then, after there is no more room for conquest, the only way left is down: internal struggles as well as deep-seated resentment of aliens result in a decline of human power that takes nearly as long as the rise, but is described far less extensively. Somehow, despite whatever enabled humans to achieve total power, they were unable to keep it.
Displaying a particular brand of irony, one of the chapters reveals the "literary genre of fiction" as another of mankind's peculiarities, not shared by any alien race.
s, each of which forms a complete story, with no characters shared between chapters. At first glance, this looks like a collection of short stories, but the individual stories clearly exist only to form a bigger picture.
This impression is reinforced by the linear placement of the stories at key events in the overall timeline
.
Each chapter bears the name of a human group or profession on whose contribution to the overall storyline the chapter is focused, such as "The Cartographers", "The Artists", "The Priests".
Furthermore, most of the chapters are prefaced by excerpts from two history textbooks (one written by a human, one by aliens) corresponding to the events described in the chapter. Compared with the "first hand" information the reader gains in the chapters, both sources show a substantial bias in their interpretation of the events.
. Mankind's behavior and motivation is a direct continuation of 16th to 19th century European colonialism
and imperialism
: ruthless exploitation and domination of other cultures, justified by an ideology of racial superiority. "Birthright" is based on the speculation that this behavior could be a fundamental trait of humans, which would be exhibited in just the same way towards extraterrestrial aliens. The later part is apparently based on the rather less speculative notion that seemingly invincible empires invariably crumble and disappear, often quite quickly. History provides numerous examples:
"Birthright" can also be seen as an antithesis
to the old SF stereotype of the vicious, dangerous aliens that threaten mankind, as seen e.g. in Starship Troopers
or the Predator
and Alien
movies. In Birthright, mankind itself is the most vicious and dangerous of all races. The same or similar themes are the basis for the short story With Friends Like These and The Damned trilogy by Alan Dean Foster
- the same author who also wrote the novelization of the Alien movies.
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 (or, more exactly, a novel-like series of vignette
Vignette (literature)
In theatrical script writing, sketch stories, and poetry, a vignette is a short impressionistic scene that focuses on one moment or gives a trenchant impression about a character, an idea, or a setting and sometimes an object...
s) written by Mike Resnick
Mike Resnick
Michael Diamond Resnick , better known by his published name Mike Resnick, is an American science fiction author. He was executive editor of Jim Baen's Universe.-Biography:...
, published in 1982. It describes the fictional history of mankind's conquest of the galaxy that serves as environment for a number of the author's other novels.
The book is unrelated to the Birthright of man, a nonfiction collection of quotations compilled by Jeanne Hersch
Jeanne Hersch
Jeanne Hersch was a Swiss philosopher of Polish origin, whose works dealt with the concept of freedom.She studied under the existentialist Karl Jaspers in Germany in the early 1930s...
.
Plot summary
Birthright spans a timeline of nearly 17 millennia, beginning at a very early stage of expansion from Earth and ending with the death of the last humans. In between, it chronicles a slow but (despite some set-backs) steady conquest of the entire galaxyGalaxy
A galaxy is a massive, gravitationally bound system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and dust, and an important but poorly understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter. The word galaxy is derived from the Greek galaxias , literally "milky", a...
- inhabited by thousands of sentient alien races, which are overpowered and oppressed using whatever tool it takes: economic pressure, diplomatic finesse, or simple military power.
Not all chapters deal with mankind's treatment of aliens; some also cover the "internal" politics that result in a development of the growing human empire from a democracy to a monarchy. But the biggest theme is undeniably the search for the elusive quality that allows mankind to overcome all opposition and manage the unique feat of conquering the entire galaxy. It is never clearly defined but manifests perhaps most succinctly when it also results in the failure of an attempt to cross the void between galaxies.
Then, after there is no more room for conquest, the only way left is down: internal struggles as well as deep-seated resentment of aliens result in a decline of human power that takes nearly as long as the rise, but is described far less extensively. Somehow, despite whatever enabled humans to achieve total power, they were unable to keep it.
Displaying a particular brand of irony, one of the chapters reveals the "literary genre of fiction" as another of mankind's peculiarities, not shared by any alien race.
Form
The book is structured into 26 chapterChapter (books)
A chapter is one of the main divisions of a piece of writing of relative length, such as a book. Chapters can be numbered in the case of such writings as law code or they can be titled. For example, the first chapters of some well-known novels are titled:*"The Boy Who Lived" – Harry Potter...
s, each of which forms a complete story, with no characters shared between chapters. At first glance, this looks like a collection of short stories, but the individual stories clearly exist only to form a bigger picture.
This impression is reinforced by the linear placement of the stories at key events in the overall timeline
Chronology
Chronology is the science of arranging events in their order of occurrence in time, such as the use of a timeline or sequence of events. It is also "the determination of the actual temporal sequence of past events".Chronology is part of periodization...
.
Each chapter bears the name of a human group or profession on whose contribution to the overall storyline the chapter is focused, such as "The Cartographers", "The Artists", "The Priests".
Furthermore, most of the chapters are prefaced by excerpts from two history textbooks (one written by a human, one by aliens) corresponding to the events described in the chapter. Compared with the "first hand" information the reader gains in the chapters, both sources show a substantial bias in their interpretation of the events.
Inspiration and relation to other works
The story is very obviously inspired by Resnick's personal interest in AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. Mankind's behavior and motivation is a direct continuation of 16th to 19th century European colonialism
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
and imperialism
Imperialism
Imperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
: ruthless exploitation and domination of other cultures, justified by an ideology of racial superiority. "Birthright" is based on the speculation that this behavior could be a fundamental trait of humans, which would be exhibited in just the same way towards extraterrestrial aliens. The later part is apparently based on the rather less speculative notion that seemingly invincible empires invariably crumble and disappear, often quite quickly. History provides numerous examples:
- Ancient RomeRoman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
- The Mongol EmpireMongol EmpireThe Mongol Empire , initially named as Greater Mongol State was a great empire during the 13th and 14th centuries...
- The British EmpireBritish EmpireThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
- Alexander the Great
"Birthright" can also be seen as an antithesis
Antithesis
Antithesis is a counter-proposition and denotes a direct contrast to the original proposition...
to the old SF stereotype of the vicious, dangerous aliens that threaten mankind, as seen e.g. in Starship Troopers
Starship Troopers
Starship Troopers is a military science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein, first published as a serial in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction and published hardcover in December, 1959.The first-person narrative is about a young soldier from the Philippines named Juan "Johnnie" Rico and his...
or the Predator
Predator (franchise)
The Predator film series is a science fiction horror film franchise. Produced by 20th Century Fox, the series started in 1987 with the film Predator, which led to two sequels and novel, comic book and video game spin-offs....
and Alien
Alien (franchise)
The Alien film series is a science fiction horror film franchise, focusing on Lieutenant Ellen Ripley and her battle with an extraterrestrial lifeform, commonly referred to as "the Alien"...
movies. In Birthright, mankind itself is the most vicious and dangerous of all races. The same or similar themes are the basis for the short story With Friends Like These and The Damned trilogy by Alan Dean Foster
Alan Dean Foster
Alan Dean Foster is an American author of fantasy and science fiction. He currently resides in Prescott, Arizona, with his wife, and is also known for his novelizations of film scripts...
- the same author who also wrote the novelization of the Alien movies.