The Demolished Man

The Demolished Man is a 1951 science-fiction novel by Alfred Bester, and was the first Hugo Award winner in 1953.

Stylistic Methods

Foremost among the interesting stylistic methods that Bester uses are the graphological deviations used to represent the communications between the telepathic characters. Bester utilises a range of graphological layouts to represent how chaotic the human psyche is and how the telepaths have learned to structure their thoughts in order to communicate together on a telepathic level. The telepaths use a vareity of different 'patterns' to give their thoughts structure and also for their own entertainment. For example, when a telepathic party begins the thoughts are represented as cross structured:

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Frankly Canapes? Why

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Ellery Thanks delicious yes,

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I Mary, they're Tate,

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Don't I'm

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Think treating

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You'll Canapes? D'Courtney.

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We Be I

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bought Working Expect

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Galen For him

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along Monarch in

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to Much Canapes? town

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help him celebrate Longer. shortly.

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He's The

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just taken his Guild

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is exam

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just and

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about been

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to classed

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However, once the party is properly structured we see further the group force themselves to play their thoughts into a more cohesive pattern:

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Sorry, Lincoln. We weren't party-minded Enough

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Tate thought Esper

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but Alan Men

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I'm Seaver remaining

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Not that a Pres was ever elected still unmarried

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This pattern is called a 'simple basket weave' but there exist others. Math curves, Music and Architechtual design are also mentioned in the same passage. The espers in the book also use this technique to play simple logic games but creating puzzles from their patterns. An example of this is a picture built from words of an eyeball floating in a stein to create the camoflaged image of Einstein.

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