The city & the city
Die Stadt & Die Stadt (original title The City & the City ) is a science fiction detective novel by the British author China Miéville . According to his editor , he wrote the novel primarily as a gift for his mother, who was terminally ill at the time and who had an absolute weakness for police work. The novel was first published in May 2009 by Macmillan, London and in the USA by Del Rey Books. In the same year, Subterranean Press published a limited special edition of 500 hand-signed copies in the USA. The German first edition was published in 2010 by Bastei Lübbe, Cologne. The text was translated by Eva Bauche-Eppers .
Synopsis
In the city-state of Besźel, Homicide Inspector Tyador Borlú is investigating the case of an anonymous woman's body, lying face down under a rotten mattress, on a bulky waste heap in a shabby neighborhood of the city.
The identity of the dead is difficult to determine but ultimately it turns out that it is Mahalia Geary , a foreign student who was apparently involved in opaque political and cultural activities, not only in Besźel , but also in the "twin city" Ul Qoma .
The investigations, which begin in Besźel , will soon lead the inspector to Ul Qoma , where he will be assigned to the local police authorities as an advisor on this case. In the course of the investigation, he becomes more and more entangled in the political turmoil that runs through the two cities. Even the legend of Orciny , the mysterious third city between Besźel and Ul Qoma, seems to be gaining in reality.
Framework for action
The city & the city is located in a world that is very close to ours. A precise localization is not possible, but the reader involuntarily locates it in the imaginary space between Wall Berlin , Korea , Jerusalem and South Africa during the apartheid period .
The technical level and the cultural background correspond to ours, as the repeatedly woven everyday scenes suggest. Cell phones and laptops have their place here, as well as Harry Potter and the Power Rangers .
The "twin city" that is the setting of the novel has a long history that goes back 2000 years. It is not for nothing that archaeological excavations and mysterious artifacts play an important role in the course of the plot.
Die Stadt & Die Stadt trades in the cities of Besźel and Ul Qoma . The two places actually occupy largely the same geographical space and are only made different cities through the selective perception of their residents. The awareness of the dichotomy is being enforced by a secret power called “Punishment” , which threatens any border violation with harsh punishments.
The residents of both cities learn from childhood to “not see” the buildings, people or events in the neighboring city, to “not hear” the noises and not to smell the smells, even when everything is happening right in front of their noses. The division becomes manifest through the clothing, the architecture , the movements of the residents and all locals learn at an early stage to recognize these differences without actually noticing them. Only the so-called copula , a huge, hall-like office structure, exists in both cities at the same time. Here is the only legal border crossing that enables an official movement between the cities, including all bureaucratic and formal obstacles, i.e. permits , passport controls and customs inspections .
The physiognomy of the city shows itself in two possible forms of being: Total Besźel or Ul Qoma or congruent. Only residents of the respective city live in the total areas, which makes it easier to maintain the mental limit. In the congruent areas, on the other hand, the citizens meet, walk next to each other, drive on the same street (which of course is named differently) without being allowed to perceive each other.
Ignoring the imaginary boundary, even if in an accident, will limit break called and is considered the most serious crime that can commit the citizens of both cities, worse than robbery or murder. In such cases, and only in such cases, the ominous authority called punishment comes on the scene and punishes the wrongdoers as they see fit, because punishment acts according to its own laws. Most of the time the border breakers never show up again. Small breaches of the boundary seem tolerable only in the case of children, while tourists are simply expelled from the city.
Most border breaches call for penalties immediately, but their surveillance capabilities are not absolute. Sometimes punishment must therefore be called separately in order to investigate complicated criminal cases (e.g. smuggling), which necessarily involve a breach of border. The so-called control committee, which consists of 21 representatives from each city and meets in the copula , is responsible for such questions . Here it is decided whether the case in question is passed on to prosecution , which is not done lightly. After all, punishment is a foreign power and neither Besźel nor Ul Qoma are happy to voluntarily surrender their state sovereignty .
Action characters
- Mahalia Geary , an American archeology student, is secretly researching Orciny , the secret third city between Besźel and Ul Qoma , who is murdered.
- Tyador Borlú , Inspector of Judicial Police of Besźel , chief investigator in the case Mahalia Geary , finally commits serious breach border and is run by punishing detained.
- Lizbyet Corwi , Constable of the Besźel Police , is Inspector Borlú's main assistant .
- Qussim Dhatt , senior detective at Ul Qoma Criminal Investigation Department, is working with Borlú on the Mahalia Geary case .
- Yolanda Rodriguez , an archeology student and best friend of Mahalia , is involved in her friend's questionable research.
- Doctor David Bowden , archaeologist with a questionable reputation, PhD supervisor of Yolanda Rodriguez , founded the Orciny myth with his own doctoral thesis , organizes the smuggling of archaeological artifacts from Ul Qoma .
- Mikhel Buric , member of the Control Committee and Chamber of Commerce of Besźel , supports the international group Sear & Core in smuggling archaeological artifacts from Ul Qoma .
- Ashil , a follower and later mentor of Tyador .
Awards
In 2010 Die Stadt & Die Stadt won the Hugo Award .
In the same year 2010, the novel received the BSFA Award for Best Novel of 2009, and the Arthur C. Clarke Award .
In October 2010 Die Stadt & Die Stadt won the World Fantasy Award for best novel.
In 2011 the German translation of Die Stadt & Die Stadt earned the Kurd-Laßwitz Prize .
Individual evidence
- ↑ [1] , at Suvudu , by Chris Schluep; published on May 4, 2009; Retrieved December 5, 2012
- ^ Alison Flood: China Miéville and Paolo Bacigalupi tie for Hugo award . In: The Guardian , September 6, 2010. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
- ^ Miéville Wins Clarke Award . Science Fiction Awards Watch. April 28, 2010. Retrieved April 28, 2010.
- ↑ SF Signal - Winners: 2010 World Fantasy Awards ( Memento of the original from November 2, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
Web links
- The City & The City in the Internet Speculative Fiction Database (English)
- Crime scene city? Cinematic writing of urban space with China Miéville and Michel Butor . Author: Christina Krakovsky