We, by Yevgeny Zamyatin

Reviewed by Rachel Stoll

Yevgeny Zamyatin’s We translated by Natasha Randall

First published in the early twentieth century shortly after the Russian Revolution of 1917, We by Zamyatin has been translated by Natasha Randall and republished in 2006. We is considered a precursor to George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four and has a feeling similar to Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, both novels which explore similar themes of a domineering government and a disengaged future society with a fantasy-realism element.

Zamyatin’s book follows the fictional story of a mathematician, D-503. He accidentally falls in love with the revolutionary I-330, who is working to bring down “the state” and the wall separating them from the rest of the world.

When D-503 tries to rationalize his actions, his extreme loyalty to the state causes him serious internal conflict and confusion. He is soon diagnosed by government doctors as having a very rare and serious illness: a soul. Without spoiling the plot development, suffice it to say that the relationship between D-503 and I-330 twists and turns with the rest of the plot, eventually leading to a climax at the end.

Zamyatin creates more texture to this world by referencing “ancient mythology and history” which include things like love, elections, and other emotional experiences that create disorder and unhappiness. Being a productive member of this society is the equivalent of being a machine: unemotional, consistent, and scheduled. Certain hours are reserved for sleep and exercise in order to be a more productive worker for the “one state,” and even sex and relationships are organized to be unemotional and streamlined.

Past reviews of We mention how this book seems to capture what is going to happen, or what was beginning to happen in the first years of the Soviet Union under Stalin. Although this book can easily be related to Stalinist Russia, it has more of a science fiction or futuristic feel, even nearly ninety years after its original publication.

Those who like science fiction and Russian literature will definitely enjoy this book. Chapters are short and terse. If you prefer a more historical view of the Soviet Union under Stalin, check out Imperium by Ryszard Kapuscinski or Koba the Dread: Laughter and the Twenty Million by Martin Amis.