Enemies of the System. Brian Aldiss
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Regentop, adopting something of Kordan’s lecturing manner, and addressing her remarks mainly to him, ‘the endotomists established the fact that man’s physiological structure comprised three governance systems which were in conflict. Owing to the rapid evolutionary development of man from animal, those governance systems were not entirely compatible. We might in the same way complain of a machine that it was faulty because it contained too much wiring. The problem was one of efficiency.’
Kordan nodded and looked bored, but Regentop pressed on.
‘The great endotomists and physiologists developed a method whereby those governance systems could be developed into one harmonious super-system. The three governance systems I refer to, by the way, were known as Central Nervous System, primarily a motor system, Autonomic Nervous System, primarily a sensual system, and Neocortex, primarily a thought system.
‘To develop this more reliable super-system, the bio-shunt was introduced. As you probably know, the bio-shunt – there’s been a lot of talk about it in this anniversary year – is an in-built processor which phases out much of the activity of the old autonomic nervous system or renders it subject to the direct control of the thought system. An obvious example is the penile erection, once an involuntary act.
‘I frequently impress on my classes that the bio-shunt is the very basis of our great utopia. It has banished the emotional problems which always plagued homo sapiens. Wars, religions, romantic love, mental illness – all manifestations of outmoded physiological systems.’
‘This is what I mentioned earlier, Millia,’ Kordan said heavily to Sygiek. ‘Please continue, Jaini Regentop, if you so wish. You express yourself well.’
She nodded in humility. ‘It is my duty to express myself well when speaking of so supreme an achievement. Rationality was something poor homo sapiens could never achieve. He was divided against himself physiologically. Therefore he was also divided against himself mentally and socially and politically and – well, in every way conceivable. He could not devise a stable society as we have done. Division was his lot.’
Her voice took on a quieter note. ‘Division was his lot. Yet sapiens had vision, too. Yes, he even visualised Utopia, the perfect place.
‘And, in an ironic way, he achieved Utopia in the end, though it meant his extinction. When his physiotechnicians and early endotomists invented the whole principle of Biological Communism – the theory behind the bio-shunt itself – then it became possible to rationalise the inharmonious governance systems genetically, passing on the improvement to succeeding generations. Through chromosome microsurgery, sapiens did away with all manner of systemic weakness – thus eliminating himself and ushering in a virtual new race. A race without absurd evolutionary flaws. A race truly capable of establishing Utopia. In a word, us. Homo uniformis, Man Alike Throughout.’
They regarded each other’s faces, smiling reflectively.
‘And what has this ancient tale to do with idleness, except that it is itself an idle tale by now?’ asked Dulcifer.
‘It’s the birth tale of the World State, no less,’ said Sygiek, frowning.
‘Jaini Regentop has just explained,’ Takeido said to Dulcifer. ‘Idleness was an old sapiens weakness. It sprang from a lack of purpose, no doubt – from internal confusion. There’s no physiological reason for idleness in these enlightened days, utopianist. We’ve conquered it.’
Dulcifer scratched his head. He laughed. ‘You’re a bit young for a conqueror!’
Takeido slipped back into his seat.
‘There’s a Museum of Homo Sapiens in Moscow,’ said Georg Morits, adding confidentially, ‘they were quite advanced for primitives, you know – even had a limited form of space travel – the principles of which were invented in Moscow. I can tell you such things, since you are of the elite, and not of the ignorant. You appreciate them. Ah, it’s good to talk among equals.’
They were sitting talking in the last bus. Three buses moved ahead of them, gradually drawing apart as they gathered speed down the embanked road. The great structure of Unity, which had dominated everything, dwindled behind them, swallowed by the everlasting landscape of Lysenka. Occasionally, as the road rose with the land, they could glimpse the shoulders of a distant plateau, riding above the warm obscurities of the plain.
Kordan clutched Sygiek’s hand, but she soon withdrew it.
The hostess in her neat red uniform with the Outourist insignia had exchanged a word with everyone individually. She reached the front of the LDB, where she took up a microphone and addressed the passengers, smiling as she did so.
‘Hello, friends of the System, my name is Rubyna Constanza 868, and I have the pleasure of being your guide for today. Welcome to the journey. We shall be away from Unity for two days, and shall spend tonight in comfortable quarters in the Dunderzee Gorge, which I feel sure you will enjoy. We shall view some of the wonders of this planet, and also some of its instructive blemishes. Refreshments will be served when we stop at midday. I am continually at your service. There are service bells by your fingertips.’
‘She’s very pretty,’ Takeido whispered. Regentop frowned for silence.
‘First I would like to remind you of a few facts concerning this planet. You will be familiar with some of them, but facts take life from their substitutes in reality.
‘This planet is large by the standards of the System Inner Planets, having an equatorial diameter of approximately 20,000 kilometres. Fortunately its mass is relatively light, so we do not suffer from oppressive gravity. Lysenka II revolves on its axis once every 33.52 E-hours, which makes for an inconveniently long day. You will be able to rest at refreshment-break, since your seats recline fully.
‘As we can observe, it is cloudy overhead. The sun rarely shines through in these latitudes, though cloud may clear at evening. Lysenka is rather a warm and drowsy planet at this period of its history.’
She indicated the world rolling past their windows. ‘There is a grove of cage trees to our left. Otherwise, vegetation is sparse. Most of the planet is semi-desert, owing to soil paucity and lack of micro-bacterial activity.
‘Although the planet has been discovered for more than a million years, we established a base on it only ten years ago. The planet awaits development. The problem is an ideological one – what to do with the fauna. The World State is still considering this vital matter. Owing to the low energy life systems here, the fauna has not been able to establish itself over much of the globe. It would be possible to extirpate all the animals. That is a neat and attractive solution. On the other hand, they may prove invaluable for studies in behaviour, and as a source for laboratory animals, etcetera.’
Constanza had slightly hastened this part of her talk. She slowed her delivery again to add, ‘However, such problems need not enter our heads on your vacation, since the decisions rest with others. At this time, we need only enjoy the strange sights. On your right, you can see now a flock of kangaroo-like creatures. I assure you there is no danger, since we are in constant radio contact with surveillance satellites. Well, that is, just today we are out of touch because of the technical difficulties of the strike; we are out of touch, but in any case we are perfectly safe in the bus. Notice that the creatures are regarding us with respect.’
The animals now bounding along beside the road had no tails. Their resemblance to kangaroos began and ended with their small pointed heads and their way of leaping over the ground. For the rest, they were more man-like, and waved their fists with oddly human gestures at the bus as it flashed past.
‘These animals eat vegetation and also flesh,’ said Constanza. ‘Their turn of speed is mainly to deliver them from those things that desire to eat them.’
The bus curved away from the flat and proceeded down a long, well-cambered curve. Ahead loomed a gigantic