The Gods Themselves

Isaac AsimovJiangsu Phoenix Literature and Art Publishing House2014

Rating 4.2
Word count
230K words
Chapters
3
ISBN
9787539978529

Tags

Literature Foreign Literature Parallel UniverseNebula AwardsSci-Fi WriterHuman NatureFull-Length NovelAmerican Sci-FiHugo Award

Summary

This is a novel by the American science fiction writer Isaac Asimov, originally published in English as The Gods Themselves in 1972; it won the Nebula Award, the Hugo Award, and the Locus Award, among other major science fiction prizes, and was one of Asimov's own favorite works. The title comes from a line in the German writer Schiller's play about Joan of Arc: "Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain." The story is set in the 22nd century. Humanity has established a matter exchange with a parallel universe, gaining an almost inexhaustible energy source, and the world has become prosperous and comfortable as a result. Yet this comes at a cost: the exchange, while supplying energy, is also pushing the solar system to the brink of destruction. Only a very few perceive the danger—an Earth scientist distrusted by colleagues, a strangely situated alien life form in the parallel universe, and a human born on the Moon with a special perceptive ability. Each approaches the same truth from a different position, yet must face indifference, suppression by authority, and public apathy. The book consists of three parts, advancing from the perspectives of Earth, the parallel universe, and the Moon, and finally converging into a complete story about energy, perception, and responsibility. With a solid framework of physical speculation and fleshed out by insight into human nature and collective blind spots, it is regarded as one of the most ingeniously conceived of Asimov's novels. The Chinese edition, translated by Cui Zhengnan, is fluent and fully preserves the original's three-part structure and speculative character.

Editor's review

如果你只读过《基地》和《我，机器人》，那么《神们自己》会让你看到一个不太一样的阿西莫夫。这本书没有银河帝国的宏大史诗，也没有机器人三定律的推演游戏，它把镜头对准了一个看似完美的技术馈赠——免费而清洁的能源，然后耐心地拆解这份馈赠背后的账单。 全书三部分结构，是本书最值得称道的设计。第一部写地球上的科学共同体如何被权威与利益绑架，一个说出真相的人如何被当成麻烦；第二部把视角整个搬到平行宇宙，写另一种生命形态的身体、家庭与社会结构，想象力极为大胆，也是许多读者津津乐道的段落；第三部回到月球，用一位边缘人的执着把前两条线索缝合起来。三部分各自独立又彼此呼应，读到最后会有一种齿轮咬合的痛快。 值得一提的是，阿西莫夫在本书中写“外星人”的方式相当罕见：他不满足于给外星生物换一层皮，而是试图设想一套完全不同的生理与伦理秩序。这种写法在五十多年后的今天读来依然新鲜。中文版由崔正男翻译，译文清晰克制，术语处理稳妥。二十余万字的篇幅，两三个晚上可以读完，适合作为进入阿西莫夫长篇世界的一本入门书，也适合老读者重读，体会其中关于“愚昧”的锋利讽刺。

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Reading tips

  1. 建议按原书顺序读完三部分，第二部的异星社会设定是全书关键，不宜跳读。
  2. 阅读第二部时可留意作者对性别、家庭与生理结构的设想，这是本书最常被讨论的部分。
  3. 读完可回头重看第一部中关于权威与舆论的段落，会发现与第三部的呼应相当精密。
  4. 若想延伸阅读，可对照《永恒的终结》比较阿西莫夫处理时间与平行世界题材的不同手法。

About the publisher

Jiangsu Phoenix Literature and Art Publishing House China · Founded in 1958

Jiangsu Phoenix Literature and Art Publishing House focuses on literary publishing while also covering the humanities, social sciences, and books on art and daily life. Its approximately 1,535 titles in the database span social novels, world history, design, science fiction, classic works, and film and television: they include modern Chinese literary classics by Lu Xun such as A Madman's Diary: The Complete Short Stories of Lu Xun, Call to Arms, Four Generations Under One Roof, and Teahouse, as well as foreign literary memoirs like Stefan Zweig's The World of Yesterday. In science fiction it offers Asimov's Galactic Empire series, while in architecture and art it publishes Liu Dunzhen's Classical Gardens of Suzhou and design titles from Phoenix Space. Its authors are concentrated among classic writers such as Lu Xun, Zweig, and Asimov, with translators including Liang Xijiang, Zhong Haonan, and Ye Lihua. Its overall character is built on classic works while embracing genre fiction and visual culture. Public information is limited, and this introduction is based on the titles in the database.

Contents

  1. Part One: Against Stupidity...
  2. Part Two: The Gods Themselves
  3. Part Three: ...Contend in Vain

FAQ

这本书和《基地》系列有关系吗？ 没有直接关系。《神们自己》是阿西莫夫独立创作的单部长篇小说，不属基地系列或机器人系列，世界观与人物均不相连，可单独阅读。
书名“神们自己”是什么意思？ 出自德国作家席勒描写圣女贞德的剧作中的一句话：“面对愚昧，神们自己也缄口不言。”书名即取此意，指向书中对群体愚昧与沉默的讽刺。
这本书获过哪些奖？ 英文原版于1972年发表，曾获星云奖最佳长篇小说奖与雨果奖最佳长篇小说奖，并获轨迹奖等奖项，是阿西莫夫获奖最多的长篇之一。
没读过阿西莫夫其他作品能看懂吗？ 完全可以。本书是独立故事，不依赖任何前置阅读。书中涉及的物理概念作者都做了通俗交代，普通读者可以顺利进入。
中文版是完整版吗？ 崔正男译本依据英文原著完整翻译，保留三部分结构与全部内容，篇幅约二十三万字，未见删节说明。

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About the author

Isaac Asimov Author · American · 1920–1992

Isaac Asimov (1920–1992) was a Russian-born American writer and professor of biochemistry, and one of the representative figures of the Golden Age of science fiction. Born in Petrovichi, Russia, he moved to the United States with his parents at the age of three. He earned a doctorate in chemistry from Columbia University and later taught at Boston University. His writing centered on science fiction, with representative works including the Foundation series and the Robot series; he also proposed the far-reaching "Three Laws of Robotics." Over his lifetime he wrote nearly five hundred books, covering science fiction, popular science, and other fields. This site holds three of his works, including The Complete Short Stories of Isaac Asimov (4 volumes), The Complete Short Stories of Isaac Asimov 1: The Last Question (2 volumes), and The Complete Short Stories of Isaac Asimov 2: The Bicentennial Man (2 volumes). Most are classified under premium fiction and science fiction, reflecting the enduring influence of his short stories among Chinese readers.