Babel
by R. F. Kuang
Contents
Interlude
Overview
This interlude traces Letty’s upbringing, Lincoln’s death, and her battle for legitimacy at Oxford. It explains her reverence for Babel and her recoil from Hermes’s violence, framing her later betrayal as a fearful, self-preserving choice shaped by misogyny, guilt, and a belief that reform must be orderly, not destructive.
Summary
Letitia Price reflects on a life shaped by patriarchal dismissal and relentless self-discipline. Ignored by her admiral father and overshadowed by her brother Lincoln, Letty hones her linguistic talent in secret, determining that severity is the only way to be taken seriously.
Lincoln is sent to Oxford, squanders his prospects, and spirals into drink and bitterness. After a vicious quarrel, Letty hurls words she regrets; the next day Lincoln dies in a drunken accident. The shock convinces Letty of language’s terrible power and hardens her resolve to control her fate.
At Oxford, Letty endures systemic misogyny and constant diminishment. Despite this, she believes admission to Babel is a near-miraculous escape from prescribed domesticity, proof that exceptional effort can transcend origins. Gratitude and fear of exclusion bind her to the institution.
After Canton, Letty cannot follow her friends’ radical turn. Griffin Lovell’s violent strategies and Ramy’s assent appall her. She sees Hermes’s plans—blackmail, kidnapping, riots, sabotage—as delusional and doomed. Convinced the path leads only to prison or the gallows, Letty concludes she cannot save her friends and must instead save herself.
Who Appears
- Letitia (Letty) PriceNarrative focus; recalls misogynistic upbringing and Lincoln’s death; clings to Babel, rejects Hermes’s violence, and chooses self-preservation.
- Lincoln PriceLetty’s brother; wastes his Oxford chance, deteriorates into drink, dies in a drunken accident after their quarrel.
- Admiral PriceLetty’s father; cold, grieving widower who favors Lincoln and resents Letty’s resemblance to her late mother.
- RamyLetty’s close friend; his embrace of Hermes’s radicalism alarms and alienates her.
- Griffin LovellRadical agitator; his advocacy of violent tactics crystallizes Letty’s rejection of Hermes.
- RobinFriend whose post-Canton convictions deepen Letty’s sense of exclusion and ideological rift.
- VictoireFriend aligned with Hermes; part of the circle Letty feels shut out from.