Louise Lyle
222
Thematic continuity between the works is not, however, confined to man’s growing awareness that his reign on earth will not be
limitless, but also extends to the inscription of human history in the
stone of which the earth itself is formed. In Les Xipéhuz, the desperate
tribes turn for help to Bakhoûn, established by the author as a more
highly intellectually evolved human being who has abandoned paganistic beliefs and nomadism in favour of a rationalistic philosophy
and settled lifestyle. Entreated to save the tribes from the advancing
menace which he names “les Xipéhuz”, Bakhoûn undertakes not only
to study the creatures in order to determine how best to contain them,
but also to recount the episode in what will in subsequent centuries
come to be recognized as “[un] grand livre antécunéiforme de soixante
tables, le plus beau livre lapidaire que les âges nomades aient légué
aux races modernes” (p. 635). It is from these stone tablets that the
remainder of the account of mankind’s first recorded battle for survival is drawn, via “la merveilleuse traduction de [l’illustre savant] M.
Dassault”, apparently converted, “[d]ans l’intérêt du lecteur […] en
langage scientifique moderne” (p. 636). Rosny thus contrives to
remove what André Maraud calls “le double obstacle de la langue et
du style”, abolishing the comprehension gap between ancient text and
modern reader while justifying “l’intervention de l’écrivain [...] par la
nécessité de mettre à la portée du lecteur profane un texte dont la
traduction littérale est d’un accès difficile”.
7
Bakhoûn’s extensive observations of the Xipéhuz reveal that
the area of the territory they occupy is directly proportional to their
population size, leading him to reflect sadly on the impossibility of
their coexistence with humans. Self-sufficient, ruthless and highly intelligent, the Xipéhuz are formed of an unknown mineral substance
and have a small star-like formation at the base of their structure from
which they project both the killer rays that incinerate their victims and
the light by which they communicate with one another, as Bakhoûn
explains:
Supposons, par exemple, qu’un Xipéhuz veuille parler à un autre. Pour cela, il lui
suffit de diriger les rayons de son étoile vers le compagnon, ce qui est toujours perçu
instantanément. […] Le parleur, alors, trace rapidement, sur la surface même de son
interlocuteur […] une série de courts caractères lumineux, par un jeu de
___________________________
7 André Maraud, “Le Texte à l’origine de l’histoire”, Europe, no. 681-682, jan-fév
1986, 101-6, p. 105.
222
Thematic continuity between the works is not, however, confined to man’s growing awareness that his reign on earth will not be
limitless, but also extends to the inscription of human history in the
stone of which the earth itself is formed. In Les Xipéhuz, the desperate
tribes turn for help to Bakhoûn, established by the author as a more
highly intellectually evolved human being who has abandoned paganistic beliefs and nomadism in favour of a rationalistic philosophy
and settled lifestyle. Entreated to save the tribes from the advancing
menace which he names “les Xipéhuz”, Bakhoûn undertakes not only
to study the creatures in order to determine how best to contain them,
but also to recount the episode in what will in subsequent centuries
come to be recognized as “[un] grand livre antécunéiforme de soixante
tables, le plus beau livre lapidaire que les âges nomades aient légué
aux races modernes” (p. 635). It is from these stone tablets that the
remainder of the account of mankind’s first recorded battle for survival is drawn, via “la merveilleuse traduction de [l’illustre savant] M.
Dassault”, apparently converted, “[d]ans l’intérêt du lecteur […] en
langage scientifique moderne” (p. 636). Rosny thus contrives to
remove what André Maraud calls “le double obstacle de la langue et
du style”, abolishing the comprehension gap between ancient text and
modern reader while justifying “l’intervention de l’écrivain [...] par la
nécessité de mettre à la portée du lecteur profane un texte dont la
traduction littérale est d’un accès difficile”.
7
Bakhoûn’s extensive observations of the Xipéhuz reveal that
the area of the territory they occupy is directly proportional to their
population size, leading him to reflect sadly on the impossibility of
their coexistence with humans. Self-sufficient, ruthless and highly intelligent, the Xipéhuz are formed of an unknown mineral substance
and have a small star-like formation at the base of their structure from
which they project both the killer rays that incinerate their victims and
the light by which they communicate with one another, as Bakhoûn
explains:
Supposons, par exemple, qu’un Xipéhuz veuille parler à un autre. Pour cela, il lui
suffit de diriger les rayons de son étoile vers le compagnon, ce qui est toujours perçu
instantanément. […] Le parleur, alors, trace rapidement, sur la surface même de son
interlocuteur […] une série de courts caractères lumineux, par un jeu de
___________________________
7 André Maraud, “Le Texte à l’origine de l’histoire”, Europe, no. 681-682, jan-fév
1986, 101-6, p. 105.