Foundation and Empire
Encyclopedia
Foundation and Empire is a novel written by Isaac Asimov
that was published by Gnome Press
in 1952. It is the second book published in the Foundation Series, and the fourth in the in-universe chronology. It takes place in two halves, originally published as separate novellas.
Foundation and Empire saw multiple publications—it also appeared in 1955 as Ace Double (but not actually paired with another book) D-125 under the title "The Man Who Upset the Universe." The stories comprising this volume were originally published in Astounding Magazine (with different titles) in 1945. The publication of Foundation and Empire was preceded and followed by one each of two books of short stories were published shortly before and after, and decades later, Asimov wrote two further sequel novels and two prequels. Later writers have added authorized tales to the series. The Foundation Series is often regarded as one of Isaac Asimov's best works, along with his robot series
, now well into its collapse but led by skilled General Bel Riose, launches an attack against the Foundation
. The Empire still retains far more resources and personnel than the Foundation and Riose is willing to use that advantage to its fullest. Devers, a native of the Foundation, intercepts a message that summarizes the General's doings, and escapes to Trantor
, trying to see the emperor and show him the message. He fails and is nearly killed, but the emperor finds out anyway. In the end, the emperor decides that Riose is a threat to his status and to the balance of the Empire and has him executed.
Psychohistory
gives members of the Foundation a full understanding of the struggle for power between generals and emperors that takes place inside the Empire.
The characters of Emperor Cleon II and Bel Riose in this story are based on those of the historical Roman Emperor Justinian I
and his general Belisarius
. Their story was familiar to Asimov from his recent reading of Robert Graves
's novel Count Belisarius
, and of his earlier study of Edward Gibbon
's History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, on which the entire series is loosely based.
"The General" was first published in the April 1945 issue of Astounding Science Fiction under the title "Dead Hand".
The second half of the book, titled "The Mule," takes place approximately one hundred years after the first half. The Empire has ceased to exist, Trantor has been sacked by a "barbarian fleet", and only a small rump state of 20 agricultural planets remain. Most of the Galaxy has split into barbaric kingdoms. The Empire entered into an even more rapid phase of decline and civil wars. The Foundation has become the dominant power in the Galaxy, controlling its regions through its trading network.
Leadership of the Foundation has become degenerate. In response to the internal corruption within the Foundation, roughly 30 outer planets belonging to the Foundation who have become wealthy on their own through extensive trade begin to plan a secession war against the Foundation.
In addition, an external threat arises in the form of a mysterious man who is known only as the Mule
. The Mule (whose real name is never revealed) is a mutant, and possesses the ability to sense and manipulate the emotions of others, usually creating fear and/or total devotion within his victims. He uses this ability to take over the independent systems bordering the Foundation, and has them wage a war against it.
The Foundation is incapable of fighting back and as the Mule advances, leadership in the Foundation assumes that Hari Seldon
predicted this attack, and that the scheduled hologram crisis message appearance of Hari Seldon would tell them how to win, just like with Bel Riose. To their surprise, they see the tape run and discover Seldon never predicted the existence of the Mule.
Foundation citizens Toran and Bayta Darell along with psychologist
Ebling Mis
and refugee clown
named "Magnifico Giganticus" travel to different worlds of the Foundation, and finally to the Great Library of Trantor
. The Darells and Mis seek to contact the Second Foundation
, which they believe will be able to defeat the Mule. They also have suspicion the Mule wishes to know the location of the Second Foundation so that he can use the First Foundation's technology to destroy it.
At the Great Library
, Ebling Mis works continuously until his health fatally deteriorates. As Mis lies dying, he tells Toran, Bayta, and Magnifico that he knows where the Second Foundation is. Just before he reveals the Second Foundation's location, however, Bayta kills him. Bayta had shortly before realized that Magnifico was actually the Mule, who had used his powers in every planet they had visited before. In the same way he had forced Mis to continue working and find what the Mule was looking for. Bayta killed Mis to prevent him from revealing the Second Foundation's whereabouts to the Mule.
The Darells are left on Trantor. The Mule leaves to reign over the Foundation and the rest of his new empire. Existence of the Second Foundation, as an organization centered on the science of psychology and mentalics, in contrast to the Foundation's focus on physical sciences, is now known to the Darells and the Mule. Now that the Mule has conquered the Foundation he stands as the most powerful force in the galaxy, and the Second Foundation is the only threat to his eventual rule over the entire galaxy. The Mule promises that he will find the Second Foundation, while Bayta asserts that he will not have enough time before the Second Foundation reacts.
"The Mule" was first published in the November and December 1945 issues of Astounding Science Fiction.
described Foundation and Empire as "fine swashbuckling galactic adventure [based] on some extremely hard-headed, scientific and mature social-political thinking." Boucher
and McComas
, however, panned the volume, declaring that "Anyone with a nodding acquaintance with Gibbon
, Breasted
, or Prescott
will find no new concepts [here] save the utterly incomprehensible ones contained in the author's own personal science of 'psycho-history'."
Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
that was published by Gnome Press
Gnome Press
Gnome Press was an American small-press publishing company primarily known for publishing many science fiction classics.The company was founded in 1948 by Martin Greenberg and David A. Kyle. Many of Gnome's titles were reprinted in England by Boardman Books...
in 1952. It is the second book published in the Foundation Series, and the fourth in the in-universe chronology. It takes place in two halves, originally published as separate novellas.
Foundation and Empire saw multiple publications—it also appeared in 1955 as Ace Double (but not actually paired with another book) D-125 under the title "The Man Who Upset the Universe." The stories comprising this volume were originally published in Astounding Magazine (with different titles) in 1945. The publication of Foundation and Empire was preceded and followed by one each of two books of short stories were published shortly before and after, and decades later, Asimov wrote two further sequel novels and two prequels. Later writers have added authorized tales to the series. The Foundation Series is often regarded as one of Isaac Asimov's best works, along with his robot series
The General
The first half of the book, titled "The General," tells how the Galactic EmpireGalactic Empire (Asimov)
In Isaac Asimov's Robot/Empire/Foundation series of novels, the Galactic Empire is an empire consisting of millions of planets settled by humans across the whole Milky Way Galaxy. Its symbol is the Spaceship and Sun logo.-Author's creation of the empire:...
, now well into its collapse but led by skilled General Bel Riose, launches an attack against the Foundation
Foundation (novel)
Foundation is the first book in Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy . Foundation is a collection of five short stories, which were first published together as a book by Gnome Press in 1951...
. The Empire still retains far more resources and personnel than the Foundation and Riose is willing to use that advantage to its fullest. Devers, a native of the Foundation, intercepts a message that summarizes the General's doings, and escapes to Trantor
Trantor
Trantor is a fictional planet in Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series and Empire Series of science fiction novels.Trantor was first described in a short story by Asimov appearing in Early Asimov Volume 1. Later Trantor gained prominence when the 1940s Foundation Series first appeared in print . Asimov...
, trying to see the emperor and show him the message. He fails and is nearly killed, but the emperor finds out anyway. In the end, the emperor decides that Riose is a threat to his status and to the balance of the Empire and has him executed.
Psychohistory
Psychohistory (fictional)
Psychohistory is a fictional science in Isaac Asimov's Foundation universe which combines history, sociology, and mathematical statistics to make general predictions about the future behavior of very large groups of people, such as the Galactic Empire...
gives members of the Foundation a full understanding of the struggle for power between generals and emperors that takes place inside the Empire.
The characters of Emperor Cleon II and Bel Riose in this story are based on those of the historical Roman Emperor Justinian I
Justinian I
Justinian I ; , ; 483– 13 or 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, was Byzantine Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the Empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire.One of the most important figures of...
and his general Belisarius
Belisarius
Flavius Belisarius was a general of the Byzantine Empire. He was instrumental to Emperor Justinian's ambitious project of reconquering much of the Mediterranean territory of the former Western Roman Empire, which had been lost less than a century previously....
. Their story was familiar to Asimov from his recent reading of Robert Graves
Robert Graves
Robert von Ranke Graves 24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985 was an English poet, translator and novelist. During his long life he produced more than 140 works...
's novel Count Belisarius
Count Belisarius
Count Belisarius is a historical novel by Robert Graves, first published in 1938, recounting the life of the Byzantine general Belisarius ....
, and of his earlier study of Edward Gibbon
Edward Gibbon
Edward Gibbon was an English historian and Member of Parliament...
's History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, on which the entire series is loosely based.
"The General" was first published in the April 1945 issue of Astounding Science Fiction under the title "Dead Hand".
The Mule
Leadership of the Foundation has become degenerate. In response to the internal corruption within the Foundation, roughly 30 outer planets belonging to the Foundation who have become wealthy on their own through extensive trade begin to plan a secession war against the Foundation.
In addition, an external threat arises in the form of a mysterious man who is known only as the Mule
Mule (Foundation)
The Mule is a fictional character from Isaac Asimov's Foundation series. One of the greatest conquerors the galaxy has ever seen, he is a mentalic who has the ability to reach into the minds of others and "adjust" their emotions, individually or en masse, using this capability to forcibly enlist...
. The Mule (whose real name is never revealed) is a mutant, and possesses the ability to sense and manipulate the emotions of others, usually creating fear and/or total devotion within his victims. He uses this ability to take over the independent systems bordering the Foundation, and has them wage a war against it.
The Foundation is incapable of fighting back and as the Mule advances, leadership in the Foundation assumes that Hari Seldon
Hari Seldon
Hari Seldon, a fictional character, is the intellectual hero of Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series. In his capacity as mathematics professor at Streeling University on Trantor, he developed psychohistory, allowing him to predict the future in probabilistic terms...
predicted this attack, and that the scheduled hologram crisis message appearance of Hari Seldon would tell them how to win, just like with Bel Riose. To their surprise, they see the tape run and discover Seldon never predicted the existence of the Mule.
Foundation citizens Toran and Bayta Darell along with psychologist
Psychologist
Psychologist is a professional or academic title used by individuals who are either:* Clinical professionals who work with patients in a variety of therapeutic contexts .* Scientists conducting psychological research or teaching psychology in a college...
Ebling Mis
Ebling Mis
Ebling Mis is a fictional character from Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series. Specifically, he is one of the main characters from the latter half of the novel Foundation and Empire. Mis is the Foundation's greatest psychologist and a very prominent scientist...
and refugee clown
Clown
Clowns are comic performers stereotypically characterized by the grotesque image of the circus clown's colored wigs, stylistic makeup, outlandish costumes, unusually large footwear, and red nose, which evolved to project their actions to large audiences. Other less grotesque styles have also...
named "Magnifico Giganticus" travel to different worlds of the Foundation, and finally to the Great Library of Trantor
Trantor
Trantor is a fictional planet in Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series and Empire Series of science fiction novels.Trantor was first described in a short story by Asimov appearing in Early Asimov Volume 1. Later Trantor gained prominence when the 1940s Foundation Series first appeared in print . Asimov...
. The Darells and Mis seek to contact the Second Foundation
Second Foundation
Second Foundation is the third novel published of the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov, and the fifth in the in-universe chronology. It was first published in 1953 by Gnome Press....
, which they believe will be able to defeat the Mule. They also have suspicion the Mule wishes to know the location of the Second Foundation so that he can use the First Foundation's technology to destroy it.
At the Great Library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
, Ebling Mis works continuously until his health fatally deteriorates. As Mis lies dying, he tells Toran, Bayta, and Magnifico that he knows where the Second Foundation is. Just before he reveals the Second Foundation's location, however, Bayta kills him. Bayta had shortly before realized that Magnifico was actually the Mule, who had used his powers in every planet they had visited before. In the same way he had forced Mis to continue working and find what the Mule was looking for. Bayta killed Mis to prevent him from revealing the Second Foundation's whereabouts to the Mule.
The Darells are left on Trantor. The Mule leaves to reign over the Foundation and the rest of his new empire. Existence of the Second Foundation, as an organization centered on the science of psychology and mentalics, in contrast to the Foundation's focus on physical sciences, is now known to the Darells and the Mule. Now that the Mule has conquered the Foundation he stands as the most powerful force in the galaxy, and the Second Foundation is the only threat to his eventual rule over the entire galaxy. The Mule promises that he will find the Second Foundation, while Bayta asserts that he will not have enough time before the Second Foundation reacts.
"The Mule" was first published in the November and December 1945 issues of Astounding Science Fiction.
Reception
Groff ConklinGroff Conklin
Edward Groff Conklin was a leading science fiction anthologist. He edited 40 anthologies of science fiction, one of mystery stories , wrote books on home improvement and was a freelance writer on scientific subjects as well as a published poet...
described Foundation and Empire as "fine swashbuckling galactic adventure [based] on some extremely hard-headed, scientific and mature social-political thinking." Boucher
Anthony Boucher
Anthony Boucher was an American science fiction editor and author of mystery novels and short stories. He was particularly influential as an editor. Between 1942 and 1947 he acted as reviewer of mostly mystery fiction for the San Francisco Chronicle...
and McComas
J. Francis McComas
Jesse Francis McComas was an American science fiction editor. McComas wrote several stories on his own in the 1950s using both his own name and the pseudonym Webb Marlowe....
, however, panned the volume, declaring that "Anyone with a nodding acquaintance with Gibbon
Edward Gibbon
Edward Gibbon was an English historian and Member of Parliament...
, Breasted
James Henry Breasted
James Henry Breasted was an American archaeologist and historian. After completing his PhD at the University of Berlin in 1894, he joined the faculty of the University of Chicago. In 1901 he became director of the Haskell Oriental Museum at the University of Chicago, where he continued to...
, or Prescott
William H. Prescott
William Hickling Prescott was an American historian and Hispanist, who is widely recognized by historiographers to have been the first American scientific historian...
will find no new concepts [here] save the utterly incomprehensible ones contained in the author's own personal science of 'psycho-history'."
Characters
- Bel RioseBel RioseBel Riose is a fictional character in Isaac Asimov's Foundation series. He was the last strong General of the Galactic Empire, Commander of the legendary Twentieth Fleet, who eventually came to be known as "the Last of the Imperials", and earned this title well. His tactical genius was compared...
, the last strong general who attempted to capture the Foundation. - Ducem Barr, Siwennian patrician and hostage of Riose.
- Lathan Devers, trader sent to spy on Riose.
- Cleon IICleon IIEmperor Cleon II is a fictional character from Isaac Asimov's Foundation series. He is the last strong monarch of the Galactic Empire, and reigned during the time when Bel Riose, the last great Imperial general, was engaging in a successful campaign against the early Foundation...
, the last strong emperor before the sack of TrantorTrantorTrantor is a fictional planet in Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series and Empire Series of science fiction novels.Trantor was first described in a short story by Asimov appearing in Early Asimov Volume 1. Later Trantor gained prominence when the 1940s Foundation Series first appeared in print . Asimov...
. - Brodrig, Cleon II's Privy Secretary.
- The MuleMule (Foundation)The Mule is a fictional character from Isaac Asimov's Foundation series. One of the greatest conquerors the galaxy has ever seen, he is a mentalic who has the ability to reach into the minds of others and "adjust" their emotions, individually or en masse, using this capability to forcibly enlist...
, mutant who captures the Foundation and attempts to establish a Second Empire. - Toran and Bayta Darell, the Mule's companions.
- Captain Han PritcherHan PritcherHan Pritcher is a fictional character from Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series. He is an important character in the second part of Foundation and Empire and the first part of Second Foundation.- Fictional history :...
, intelligence agent for the Foundation, and first to recognise the power of the Mule. - MayorMayorIn many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
Indbur III, mayor of the Foundation during the Mule's conquest. - Ebling MisEbling MisEbling Mis is a fictional character from Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series. Specifically, he is one of the main characters from the latter half of the novel Foundation and Empire. Mis is the Foundation's greatest psychologist and a very prominent scientist...
, psychologist who discovered the location of the Second Foundation. - Dagobert IXDagobert IXEmperor Dagobert IX is a fictional character from Isaac Asimov's Foundation and Empire. He is one of the last, if not the last, emperor of the Galactic Empire....
, one of the last emperors on Neotrantor
Sequels
- The sequel, Second FoundationSecond FoundationSecond Foundation is the third novel published of the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov, and the fifth in the in-universe chronology. It was first published in 1953 by Gnome Press....
, tells the rest of the Mule's story. - In the fourth book in the series, Foundation's EdgeFoundation's EdgeFoundation's Edge is a science fiction novel by Isaac Asimov, the fourth book in the Foundation Series. It was written more than thirty years after the stories of the original Foundation trilogy, due to years of pressure by fans and editors on Asimov to write another, and, according to Asimov...
, Asimov writes that the Mule had been a rogue member of the planet/society Gaia. - The demise of the Empire's remnant on Trantor is told in "Trantor Falls" by Harry TurtledoveHarry TurtledoveHarry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.- Life :...
in Foundation's FriendsFoundation's FriendsFoundation's Friends, Stories in Honor of Isaac Asimov is a 1989 festschrift honoring science fiction author Isaac Asimov, in the form of an anthology of short stories set in Asimov's universes, particularly the Robot/Empire/Foundation universe. The anthology was edited by Martin H...
, a tribute collection.