Wasp

Eric Frank Russell

London: Orion, 2000 [1957]. ISBN: 0-57507-095-1. Pp. 175

This short read is among the most engaging and funny novels I have come across in quite a while. It isn't often that one can say "funny" in reference to what is an account of terrorist mayhem and sabotage albeit on an alien world. Even though the novel is ostensibly sci-fi, aside from having the protagonist stomp about on a very recognizable alien planet and terrorize some suspiciously human-like aliens, neither the technology nor the worlds require more suspension of disbelief as, say, an average history book. Of course, placing the action on Jaime, a planet in the Sirian Empire, allows Russell to employ his wry black humor without offending anyone but the most humorless. Even then, some dimwits have interpreted the purple color of the Sirians as a thinly-veiled reference to either the "yellow peril" or some other "non-white" peril in general. Heck, some even claim that the title refers to WASP, the acronym for the white Anglo-Saxons, rather than the tiny insect whose ability to annoy (and perhaps cause damage by forcing a diversion of resources) belies its insignificant size.

The story is simple. Earth (aka Terra) is at war with the far more numerous, but much less technologically sophisticated, Sirian Empire. James Mowry reluctantly agrees to serve as a "wasp". His job is to infiltrate Sirian society on Jaime and make himself as much of a nuisance as possible. The idea is to force the authorities to divert effort and resources in chasing the phantom bugbears he unleashes, and distract the Sirians from their war with Terra, perhaps even enabling Earth to launch some surprise attacks and gain a military advantage. The book follows him as he completes the first four steps of his nine-step program there.

How does one force a government to spend untold resources chasing ghosts? One has to convince it that the ghosts are real. So, the principal task is to invent a sinister anti-government organization. In this case, Dirac Angestun Gesept, the Sirian Freedom Party. Step 1: distribute DAG stickers all over the city. Step 2: kill a few important people, preferably members of the secret police, and claim credit for DAG. Step 3: hire local muscle to do more killings so that the organization appears larger than it is. Bonus: when interrogation, no matter how brutal, of these guys fails to deliver any actionable intelligence, the authorities are apt to get even more paranoid. Spread more rumors and increase uncertainty by planting fake listening devices that appear to bug high officials. Step 4: Terran attack increases doubts in the Sirian government's ability to handle the war and puts their brave propaganda to the lie. All this plays well with DAG's patriotic calls to end the destructive and useless war. Unfortunately, we do not learn of steps 5 through 8 because Terra orders him to accelerate the plans to step 9: blowing up secondary targets so that authorities would not be prepared to respond properly to the coming invasion. Mowry barely escapes with his life but when he gets back to his kin, he is commanded to replace another wasp on a different Sirian planet.

The story is simple and straightforward, and the fun is not as much as following its less than labyrinthine twists and turns but in enjoying the proceedings. It's not about getting to the destination but about the journey. Russell is a fine writer and his characterizations are surprisingly complex, with nice touches like local lingo. He is harshly critical of authoritarianism: the Sirian society is oppressive, under constant surveillance, and even though the police proves to be rather quick on its feet (Mowry has several narrow escapes), it is ironically susceptible to paranoid behavior, overreaction, and truly braindead action (like the requirement to register all organizations, one with which Mowry complies! This reminds me of the hilarious questions the US State department put on the visa applications: Are you a terrorist? Are you a communist? Do you plan to engage in crime in the US?) But isn't that always the case? Societies that rely on outward obedience force people to falsify their opinions, which creates a lot of work for the secret police that must now ferret out subversives. Lack of opposition no longer signals support for the government. Instead, it means a well-honed ability to evade detection. The less the authorities are able to crack the undercover nut, the more successful and sinister the supposed conspiracy seems. Sometimes I wonder if the best way to deal with societies like those is to let them operate in the open!

My favorite line is when his efforts begin to bear fruit as ordinary people begin to notice that the government's claims to invincibility ring hollow in the light of news of abandoning entire planets: "For months we have been making triumphant retreats before a demoralized enemy who is advancing in utter disorder."

May 3, 2009