One of the Alori tells Trevelyan:
"'The Alori are a unified culture. They evolved as one, whereas your kind did not. That is again a reflection of the gulf between us.'" (p. 143)
He has already stated that the two civilizations are so different that one must destroy the other. I suspect an over-simplistic dichotomy here. First, the universe is big enough that incompatible civilizations can at least try to divide it between them as happens later in this future history with the Hulduvians. Secondly, two very different civilizations can learn from each other. It might help human beings to learn how the Alori evolved as one. The Stellar Union tries to coordinate interstellar affairs to avoid conflict. The Alori have traveled between planetary systems by appropriating Tiunran and Nomad spaceships but they should be able to trade their holistic biologically-based sciences for the space technology that enables them to spread their kind of life to some other planets.
Conflict between incompatible cultures is an obvious sf plot premise but there could also be a narrative about communication, cooperation and conflict-avoidance.
3 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
But it needs BOTH sides to a dispute or possible conflict to agree to resolve their quarrels peacefully for what you hope happens to work. It only takes one party to feel threatened by the other side for a dispute to become increasingly deadly and impossible to end it peacefully.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
Yes and the Alori merely see the differences, hence the conflict.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
Differences which I am sure the Alori, rightly or wrongly, perceived to be threats to them.
Ad astra! Sean
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