The Moon Moth
Encyclopedia
"The Moon Moth" is a science fiction
short story by American author Jack Vance
, first published in 1961
.
One day, he receives an alert to arrest a notorious assassin named Haxo Angmark, who is due on the next starship. Thissell, however, gets the message too late. He races to the spaceport, but Angmark, thoroughly comfortable with Sirenese customs, has already landed and disappeared. Thissell commits a number of serious social blunders in his haste to reach the spaceport and in enquiring after Angmark.
The next morning, Thissell is shown the body of an outlander. He concludes that, since the fugitive would be unable to pass himself off as a native, Angmark must have killed and taken the place of one of the handful of expatriates on the planet. But since even they wear masks, how is Thissell to know which one?
Eventually, Thissell solves the mystery by borrowing a slave from each of the suspects and determining their masters' mask preferences before and after Angmark's arrival. He succeeds in identifying his quarry, but is captured and forced to walk unmasked in public (the ultimate impropriety to the natives), while Angmark masquerades as Thissell, even to wearing his Moon Moth mask. However, the Sirenese turn on Angmark and kill him for the perversion of unmasking another man and, ironically, for Thissell's previous gaffes.
Thinking quickly, Thissell cleverly represents his humiliation as an act of unsurpassed bravery, asking if any present would be willing to be so shamed in order to destroy his enemy. With his new-found confidence, Thissell receives offers of gifts (the acceptance of which would enhance the prestige of both the giver and the recipient). He first goes with a mask maker to procure a covering more befitting his lofty new strakh.
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...
short story by American author Jack Vance
Jack Vance
John Holbrook Vance is an American mystery, fantasy and science fiction author. Most of his work has been published under the name Jack Vance. Vance has published 11 mysteries as John Holbrook Vance and 3 as Ellery Queen...
, first published in 1961
1961 in literature
The year 1961 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*First English production of Bertolt Brecht's The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui*Michael Halliday publishes his seminal paper on the systemic functional grammar model....
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Plot summary
Edwer Thissell, the new consul from Earth to the planet Sirene, has trouble adjusting to the local culture. The Sirenese cover their faces with exquisitely crafted masks that indicate their social status or strakh. They also communicate by singing, accompanying themselves with one of a dozen musical instruments, selected based on the social situation. Furthermore, errors of etiquette may prove fatal. Thissell is a maladroit musician and lacks confidence in the alien society, so he is forced to wear a lowly Moon Moth mask.One day, he receives an alert to arrest a notorious assassin named Haxo Angmark, who is due on the next starship. Thissell, however, gets the message too late. He races to the spaceport, but Angmark, thoroughly comfortable with Sirenese customs, has already landed and disappeared. Thissell commits a number of serious social blunders in his haste to reach the spaceport and in enquiring after Angmark.
The next morning, Thissell is shown the body of an outlander. He concludes that, since the fugitive would be unable to pass himself off as a native, Angmark must have killed and taken the place of one of the handful of expatriates on the planet. But since even they wear masks, how is Thissell to know which one?
Eventually, Thissell solves the mystery by borrowing a slave from each of the suspects and determining their masters' mask preferences before and after Angmark's arrival. He succeeds in identifying his quarry, but is captured and forced to walk unmasked in public (the ultimate impropriety to the natives), while Angmark masquerades as Thissell, even to wearing his Moon Moth mask. However, the Sirenese turn on Angmark and kill him for the perversion of unmasking another man and, ironically, for Thissell's previous gaffes.
Thinking quickly, Thissell cleverly represents his humiliation as an act of unsurpassed bravery, asking if any present would be willing to be so shamed in order to destroy his enemy. With his new-found confidence, Thissell receives offers of gifts (the acceptance of which would enhance the prestige of both the giver and the recipient). He first goes with a mask maker to procure a covering more befitting his lofty new strakh.
Adaptations
Seeing Ear Theatre produced an audio drama adapted, produced and directed by George Zarr. It expands the Vance story with an introduction showing the fate of Thissell's predecessor. Drunk and wearing a Tavern Bravo mask, he attempts to force his attentions on a woman. He is stopped and summarily executed by the Sirenese, not for the attempted seduction/assault, but for misjudging the strakh level of her mask and for addressing his captors without a musical instrument.External links
- Full Audio drama version (with musical accompaniments) by "Seeing Ear Theatre" MP3 download at sffaudio.com