We

Rating:
Summary: Prophetic
Review: This is a desperate plea to open ones eyes and view the stark truth of collectivism, totalitarianism, State control and the reduction of individuals to a cog in a wheel. Written from Russia in the early 20th century directly after the Red victory, it literally radiates with a forceful tale of evil in the guise of good. Worse, the evil thinks it is good.

Modern totalitarian states are based on the premise of a Utopia - entites that are by their very nature static and unchanging. No surprises, no questioning, everything planned to the last nut and bolt. This utter predictability is a major drawing card for the masses since both democracy and capitalism are messy, unplanned, redundant yet gloriously effective in granting to the individual almost unlimited freedom.

The novel reminds one of Anthem by Rand in its depiction of the solitary man attempting to rise above the herd. Then again, one hears echoes of 1984 and the everpresent voice of Big Brother. In all three cases, the State strives to eliminate any display of personal privacy. Remarkably, WE was completed long before either of these and holds up well today.

Modern technology has allowed the State to become all powerful, all-intrusive, awesome in its ability to warp and trap the minds of human beings. The scariest messages today are those promising planned societies in which everyone has their place while the benevolent leaders care for us all - shades of North Korea.

Russia has always been a collectivist nation from its earliest days. Whether it was tribe, religion, Party, economic class, ethnic class - the group was always paramoung over the individual. This book is a lesson we shun at our own peril.

Rating:
Summary: A Great Piece of Speculative Fiction and History
Review: We is an SF (speculative fiction) novel about a man living in a futuristic distopia, and is the predecessor to other distopian novels such as Brave New World and 1984. It was written in 1921 by Zamyatin in communist Russia and he was exiled because of it, but still managed to get it circulated throughout the world. The novel is written in a series of entries each beginning with a few set out topics and the number of the entry it is. The man is the builder of a new spaceship called the 'integral,' a ship whose purpose is to bring "mathematically infallible happiness" to galactic civilizations. He writes a journal to his ancestors before the 'one state' in which he lives, which makes the book unique and interesting to read.
His writing style is interesting because of the entry format and his writing to the past from the future. The image that he is trying to is one of communism in Russia, and how it will become universal and almost unquestionable in the future. It contributes the element of big brother in 1984 just without the cameras; instead, they have everything made of a high-tech glass. In addition, it contributed the reservation system to Brave New World by having a jungle like world outside the walls of the city. It has the obvious theme of that someone is always watching, and questions if our world will become one state working for the common good.
The whole society is based on happiness and making sure that no one is ever in a place were they want to rebel, but just in case there is a futuristic torture device. Of course, the narrator decides to rebel from the beginning of the novel, showing the theme that society as a whole cannot be completely contained even in a perfect ignorant society. The end though is very shocking and compares a lot to that of 1984, it is predictable if you have read 1984 but the ideas of the novel are way beyond its time.
I cannot state that it is a better novel then 1984 or Brave New World it is just comparable and a wonderful worthwhile read. Its themes and ideas are way beyond its time especially for being written only in the beginnings of communism. We is a bold and strong novel that portrays what it sets out to and proves that communism or any government cannot hold down the human nature of rebellion. This novel is a testament of a man who saw the beginnings of the end in Russia and had the courage to stand out and write this great SF novel. His conviction and ideas are vividly portrayed because he was actually living in the beginnings of this, and I recommend this novel highly to any SF fan or curious reader, it is a great piece of literature and history.

Rating:
Summary: "We" is superior to both "1984" and "Brave New Worlds."
Review: Eugene Zamitian's "We" is better than Huxley's "Brave New Worlds" and Orwell's"1984," but is equal to Anthony Burgess' "The Wanting Seed." The reader will not be disappointed after reading "We," perhaps they will see a new world without privacy, especially when going through airport security when asked to take off their shoes by people who might also take those jobs because of having a foot fetish? "We" was written at the time the Soviet system was starting in Russia when Stalin inherited it from Lenin, a time not unlike now with people like U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft, an equal of Laventrii Beria and an unelected leader, George the Second (George W. Bush, Jr.), and a conservative Republican regime, not a far cry from the dis-Utopia of Soviet Russia under Stalin who suppressed the writer's like Eugene Zamiatin, Bulgakov, and others. Perhaps we in this totalitarian regime will experience what the characters in "We" experienced with lack of privacy and freedom?

Rating:
Summary: A good, original idea, poorly executed.
Review: "We" pops up on readers' radars because George Orwell cited it as a major source of inspiration for "1984", the classic dystopian novel. Many assume that this is high praise for the book, and as a result it enjoys a high reputation among dystopia fans. If George Orwell thought so highly of it, though, he might not have tried to write his own novel based on the same ideas. While Zimyatin's concept was thought-provoking and original (and the source of Orwell's inspiration), the book fell flat in its execution (and it may have been this that led Orwell to try his hand at righting Zimyatin's wrongs). The plot-line was implausible and the characters were not very interesting or well-developed. Orwell improved on "We" greatly by giving the reader a compelling story and interesting characters.

When reading "We" it is pretty easy to see what Zimyatin was getting at, but the casual reader may want to stick to dystopian staples such as "1984" and "Brave New World" for any sense of literary enjoyment. "We" is thankfully short, so readers interested in a more in-depth exposure to dystopian novels may find it worthwhile to read from the standpoint of the historical development of the dystopian genre.

Ayn Rand's "Anthem" is a remarkably similar work (written after "We") with a superb execution of the same ideas. Certainly anyone who reads "We" will feel rewarded by a subsequent reading of "Anthem", which "fixes" the problems of Zimyatin's book.

Rating:
Summary: Before Brave New World & 1984...
Review: I was reading an article some time ago that mentioned this novel as a precursor to George Orwell's 1984. Well, as 1984 is one of my favorite novels, I thought I should take a look at this one. Boy, am I glad I did. This is one fantastic book.

In a world where no one has a name, this is the journal of D-503. He is a man who lives in a city entirely made of glass (since who would have anything to hide from the state?). He may only pull down his shades if he has the proper coupon (such as a permitted tryst with O-90). He must take his daily constitutional walk with the rest of the city and watch the films supplied by the state.

But D-503 is a man who believes in reason and the correctness of the state. He chews his food the suggested number of times before he swallows. He lives his life by the routine given to him by the state. He works to build the Integral, the first rocket ship to take reason to the stars. All seems perfect...until he meets I-330.

I-330 shows him the power of desire and soon independent thought takes over his mind. He learns of a more primitive world that exists outside the glass walls of the city. He even begins to believe he should participate in the revolution against the state.

And how does it all end? Well, I don't want to give too much away. Besides, there's so much more than I've even hinted at here. Do yourself a favor and read this book for yourself.

Rating:
Summary: A Depressing Dystopian Future
Review: Yevgeny Zamyatin, translator Clarence Brown tells us, had an enormous influence on George Orwell's seminal dystopian novel "1984." "We," written in 1924 as the turmoil of the Bolshevik revolution was in its final stages, definitely shares several similarities with Orwell's bleak novel. Most notable is the relationship between Zamyatin's protagonist, D-503, with a corrupting woman, a relationship that mirrors Orwell's Winston and Julia. But where Orwell was British, Zamyatin was Russian and writing in a time and place where dystopian visions were quickly becoming a reality. The author of "We" eventually left Russia forever (he actually wrote to Uncle Joe Stalin requesting permission to leave! What a brave soul!) and "We" did not appear in print in the Soviet Union until 1988. It is not difficult to see why: "We" is deeply subversive to totalitarian forms of government.

Zamyatin's novel, described in the Penguin edition as a "great prose poem," takes place in the twenty-sixth century in a geographical place unknown to the reader. The narrator of the story, the previously mentioned D-503, is writing down his experiences as part of a grand scheme to launch a rocket ship into outer space. D-503 is the chief mathematician of this project, named INTEGRAL, and the goal of the mission is to find life on other planets in order to bring them "elevation" through totalitarian government. The narrator's journal will accompany the rocket ship along with poems, letters, and other propaganda singing the praises of "OneState," which is the moniker of the ruling apparatus in D-503's world. OneState, with the mysterious "Benefactor" at the helm, rules with an iron fist through an intricate web of time management principles based on Frederick Winslow Taylor's contributions to the industrial revolution. At any given time of the day, millions perform the same functions at the same time. The only exceptions are sexual relations and a few hours of free time that D-503 hopes will one day be regimented as well. All of these activities take place behind the Green Wall, a barrier of glass that effectively separates the city from the countryside.

If you think Huxley and Orwell are bleak, Zamyatin's novel beats them hands down. The introduction to this version of "We" tries to stress that the book does have its humorous moments, but I found very little amusement in this story. People with numbers instead of names, uniforms as the only allowed apparel, the worship of technology not as a means of getting things done but as an example of desirable conformity, and death penalties for unplanned pregnancies all contributed to my sense of utter dread about the author's vision. This is a sad, dark tale about a possible future with little optimism. Zamyatin does include the obligatory revolutionary group, called MEPHI, personified in the form of a woman named I-330, who drinks alcohol, smokes cigarettes, and wears forbidden clothing on occasion. After a few encounters with I-330, D-503 becomes aware that he is suffering a "sickness," the symptoms of which are dreams and the discovery that he suddenly has a "soul." Regrettably, any hope offered by MEPHI and I-330 dissolves when the state takes the repressive measure of developing an operation that uses X-rays to melt imagination out of people's heads. By the time the conclusion of the story rolls around, hope is as distant as a ship on the horizon.

"We" is an unusual read. Things really start to take off when D-503 encounters the corrupt I-330. His awakening is often confusing to the reader. The ramblings of this mathematician make one wonder if he is really experiencing events or hallucinating them. I decided on the former because if his mind was not used to experiencing life outside of OneState it would follow that new sensations might produce a sense of bewilderment. It was enjoyable to see how the world came alive when D-503 experiences a bevy of colors and emotions; he starts to shout out his feelings, he cries, and he even daydreams on the job. While this sensory overload makes for difficult reading at times, it also makes for an engaging story.

Without this Russian pioneer's groundbreaking work, the dystopian genre may never have gotten off the ground. Zamyatin's "We" is not an easy book to read and understand, but it is an essential work that I should have read years ago instead of allowing it to languish on my bookshelf. Moreover, the author makes his narrator a cheerful advocate of OneState's authoritarian rule, a viewpoint that other dystopian novels fail to do and which makes "We" even more of a unique read. For fans of utopian and anti-utopian literature, Yevgeny Zamyatin's book is time well spent.

Rating:
Summary: A nightmare vision of the future
Review: "We," by Yevgeny Zamyatin, has been translated into English by Clarence Brown. An author bio at the beginning of the book notes that Zamyatin (1884-1937) was exiled by both Tsarist Russia and the Communist regime, and that "We" was written in 1920/21.

This novel takes place 1,000 years after the earth has been dominated by the OneState. It is a world of total regimentation; there is virtually no privacy or freedom. The people have numbers rather than names. The story of this bizarre world is told in the first person by a builder assigned to construct a space ship. He offers a chilling view of the OneState.

"We" is an intriguing work of science fiction that is full of striking visual imagery. Zamyatin's prose, as translated by Brown, has a surreal, dreamlike quality. The book reminds me somewhat of Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World," although I found "We" to be less bitingly satiric.

Rating:
Summary: The beginning...
Review: The first anti-utopian fantasy, with glass towers, schedules and the 'Benefactor'. Here are the seeds of 'Brave New World' and '1984'. A study of human emotions or is the book about the final nail, the final step in the 'Revolution'? Yet beyond the glass walls are people who know nothing of schedules and are free. Unlike '1984' where the three nations of the world are really nothing more than twisted mirrors of each other and, therefore, offer nothing in the way of outside ideas nor a way of escape, 'WE' is a police state in a sea of unknown chaos. Will the outside forces break down the walls or will the State, having found a way to cure people of their souls, win in the end?

Rating:
Summary: 1984 all over again?
Review: We is a book all about beating the system. It follows one man's life through a journal he is writing to send on the spaceship, Integral, to primitive civilizations like us. The journal writing style and many other features reminded me greatly of 1984. This is a classic book about the impossibility of a true utopia. The love story that flows through the book ads intrigue and seems to parallel 1984 in several ways as well. The reader begins to feel the author of this journal's thoughts, regrets, and inner struggles. A true classic that few have read or even heard of that I believe should be added to every need to read list.

Rating:
Summary: That which science fiction is capable
Review: We is a true classic of the science fiction genre. It's also mandatory reading for anyone interested in uptopian/dystopian sub-genre. It was the inspiration for 1984 and despite the fact that the early chapters feel very similar to Orwell's book, the story diverge into very different an distinct stories.

Zamyatin never lets the politics of the book override his story. The plot is crisp, and although the characters are somewhat thin (not unusual for dystopian fiction), you are engaged right to the heartbreaking end.