The Silent City

by Élisabeth Vonarburg

Book Overview

In a future Europe, where technology has been driven underground and the Earth's population has been tribalized by nuclear war and political conflict, a young woman named Elisa is born into the Silent... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0553297899
• ISBN13: 9780553297898
• Release Date: July 1992
• Publisher: Spectra Books
• Length: 261 Pages
• Weight: 0.43 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

A True Postmodernist Sci-Fi Novel

The plot line exists to support the ruminations of the story's main character, Elisa. It is through her thoughts that we learn about the City--a semi-autonomous, self-referencing (but not truly self-aware) entity in which the last few humans live...along with their simulacra, their false selves. Each real human eventually dies, despite rejuvenation treatments. Death is one of the themes of this novel, as are freedom and illusion. The main moral of the story is "you shouldn't decide for others." Whether that is always possible or even always desirable, is of course up to the reader to decide. The author, however, makes it clear that no Project or Great Design should ever be imposed--however benevolently and nonviolently--upon others. Again, whether this is realistic is among the many questions that float through the story's pages. The story is well-enough written, and interesting for being different from most other sci-fi novels. The protagonist is sympathetic but not perfect...and she knows this. This novel can serve as a kind of reference point for questions, including self-questioning one's own values and motives. This book would please Foucault and the other biggies of postmodernism, I'm sure; how strong a novel it makes remains for you to decide.