Colonialism, Identity, and the Struggle for Meaning in R.F. Kuang's "Babel"

Language is a tool of communication, but it is also a force for constructing our understanding of reality and our experience of our own humanity. In R.F. Kuang’s gripping novel, ‘‘Babel, or The Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution,’’ the relation between language and power, language and resistance, language and colonialism, is explored. Set in an imaginatively re-created 19th-century England, Kuang’s novel tells the story of a Chinese boy named Robin Swift, whose intertwined narratives of political intrigue and resistance at the Oxford Royal Institute of Translation shed light on the complex story of Britain’s colonial inheritance.

One of the central themes of “Babel” is the complicated interplay between language, power, and violence in the context of colonialism. The novel asks pointed questions about the role of the academy and the production of knowledge in maintaining systems of domination. A fundamental question that the novel delves into: How does the restriction and manipulation of language function as a vital strategy for upholding colonial power? The British Empire’s ability to conquer and subdue other people was bound up with its capacity to master and appropriate their languages and intellectual traditions. The institution of Babel also takes part in this process, practising translation as a way of exerting control over colonised communities and extracting capital from them.

The question is important because it reminds us that education and language can be used to bolster inequities, to maintain what veins of power and to sustain the hegemony of culture. It situates the question within a larger issue of how language, power, and violence interrelate; by implication, this is a text which might well illuminate the legacies of colonialism, the struggle against them, and the ongoing struggles for decolonization and self-determination. The further exploration of this thematic may require that we draw upon insights from fields as diverse and as different as postcolonial studies, linguistic anthropology, cultural theory, and critical race theory. By setting the prime question of the book into a broader historical and theoretical context, we may learn more about the ways in which language and knowledge are involved in the shaping of social and political realities, particularly those past ones which help to structure the present ones.

Kuang’s use of language in ‘Babel’ is key to her exploration of the central theme in this story: the theme of language, power and violence in a colonial context. Her vivid and precise prose plunges the reader deep into the world of 19th-century Oxford, and there is a palpable sense of the underlying power dynamics and tensions at play.

One distinctive feature of Kuang’s prose is the inclusion of untranslated Chinese (and other languages) words and phrases throughout the text. In leaving these terms untranslated Kuang seeks to remind the reader of the limits to their own linguistic competence, and to draw attention to the imbalance of power between English and other languages in the colonial context. This technique also helps to establish Robin’s cultural identity, and the continual sense of dislocation he feels as a Chinese student in a predominantly white, English institution.

The narrative structure of Babel is, for the most part, linear, documenting Robin’s progress from his childhood in China to his undergraduate days in Oxford. In this, Kuang inserts flashbacks and historical asides which offer the reader deeper explanation of the political and social forces which have made the characters who they are. This setup allows Kuang to unravel the question of language and power at a pace that is suited to readers as they work through the more lengthy and complex questions of what it is to know who they are and where they fit into the larger picture, particularly in the story of the colonial response to colonisation.

In addition, throughout the novel, Kuang uses symbolism and imagery to build on the themes, notably the silver bars that result from the translation process, which act as a striking symbol of the commodification and exploitation of language for colonial ends, and the recurring image of the Tower of Babel as a metaphor for the arrogance and insanity of seeking to control and manipulate language for purposes of power and domination.

Code-switching in Babel thus gives us deep insight into the psychological effects of colonialism on individual identity and belonging. Throughout the novel, Robin struggles with the conflict between his Chinese heritage and his immersion in the privileged white world of Oxford; this internal tension parallels a phenomenon that Du Bois famously described as “double consciousness,” the experience of marginalised individuals who must constantly negotiate between two distinct cultural selves.

As Robin becomes more and more conscious of the ways in which Babel is complicit in the exploitation and oppression of colonized peoples, he becomes profoundly morally injured and disillusioned. This psychological wound is deepened by the racism and marginalization he endures as a Chinese student in a predominantly white institution (I mean, Oxford). Robin’s attempt to square his love of language and learning with his burgeoning awareness of the violence and injustice facilitated by the colonial system mirrors the trauma of living in a society structured by systemic inequality.

The use of silverworking and translation as instruments of colonial domination is surprisingly in keeping with the sociological concept of cultural capital, according to which some forms of knowledge and skill are valued and rewarded by those in power while others are denigrated or suppressed. Robin's voyage of self-discovery is marked by a gradual realization of how language and knowledge have been and can be used as tools of power and control. His eventual decision to join the ranks of the opposition to Babel is, one might say, a psychological shift from internalized oppression to a sense of agency and empowerment.

Resilience and resistance, in the psychological sense, form another major theme of "Babel." The characters in the novel demonstrate amazing strength and courage in the face of the great psychological and emotional trials that confront them. This speaks to the psychological idea of “posttraumatic growth” in which individuals may achieve beneficial personal and social changes during the aftermath of trauma and adversity.

The magic of silver-working, as it relies on the translation of words between languages, poses questions about the degree to which our languages shape our perceptions of the world and our ability to control it. This notion seems to fit neatly into a linguistic relativity framework, which suggests that the structure and vocabulary of a language can influence how its speakers perceive and think about the world. Kuang explores philosophical questions of personal identity throughout his novel too, such as the ways in which our thinking about who we are is culturally and politically moulded by language and other forces. Robin’s struggle to reconcile his Chinese heritage with his English education suggests that individuals must create their own meanings and identities in a world that is often hostile or indifferent to their existence, a question which is perhaps most closely associated with existentialist ideas. And finally, the often extremely violent loss of language and cultural identity experienced by colonized peoples in the book raises questions about the extent to which our sense of self is tied to the languages we speak and the communities to which we belong.

More generally, Babel offers a damning commentary on the philosophical and moral arguments that have been – and continue to be – used to justify colonialism and imperialism. The British Empire’s insistence that it was exporting "civilisation" and "progress" rings hollow and self-serving in the face of the horrors that it perpetuated in the name of exploitation and subjugation. On this level, the text is an argument against the notion that one group can justly dominate another group, an argument for a more equal and universal society.

Certainly, because it is a work of historical fantasy, the author of ‘Babel’ is free to blend fact and fiction in the interests of addressing his chosen themes and issues; but this freedom does involve questions of perspective, bias, and sources of information, which might not arise in some other kinds of study.

First is the biographical perspective, in which it is important to stress that R.F. Kuang is a Chinese-American author who has studied Chinese language and culture and has a scholarly background in history and linguistics; she thus has an intimate understanding of the concerns related to language, power, and colonialism that the novel addresses. Her perspective on these issues may well be different from someone coming to the topic without her background; her personal experiences and cultural heritage may also have shaped her approach to these subjects, and this is further reflected in the novel with its concern for marginalized communities and their struggles against oppression.

A potential bias in the text of “Babel” is Kuang’s evident sympathy with the colonised and oppressed. Kuang depicts in graphic and unattractive detail the brutalities and injustices of the British Empire, from which Robin emerges as the moral centre of the narrative, who eventually comes to reject and fight against the colonial system. While this attitude is certainly understandable given the actual history of colonisation, we should remember that it represents a particular perspective and may not reflect the full complexities and ambiguities of the colonial experience.

Problems notwithstanding, “Babel” is an intelligent and effective treatment of the subject and themes it deals with. The novel’s inventive and flexible language, its effective character studies, and the ingenuity of its plot all lend themselves to the representation of colonialism, identity, and resistance in a complex and varied fashion. In making all this resonate within a specific historical and cultural context, it asks readers to contemplate the lasting consequences of these matters, and to search deep within themselves for their own connections to the world of politics and power.

In the end, "Babel" may not give a final answer to its central question, nor does it, perhaps, offer an empirically substantiated one. But it does provide a thoughtful and emotionally compelling examination of the ways in which language, and power more generally, shape our understanding of ourselves and the world around us. And by engaging with these themes through the lens of fiction and the imagination, Kuang allows for new ways of thinking – and for new ways of resisting. Readers are left to consider their own role in the ongoing struggle for a world in which all are valued.