40:
215:
hospital, he remains inert; the doctors wonder who he is and what explains the unique unresponsive state they find he is in. Space has given Rambo special powers: aware of
Elizabeth's presence in the building, he tears his way through a wall, and his uttered word "No", when he cannot see her, has an effect on technology in the area. Back in his hospital bed, he speaks gibberish when the doctors try to talk to him.
214:
symbol for the vowel written "u" in French.) Having sent
Elizabeth, who is dangerously ill, to a hospital on Earth, Crudelta constructs a special spaceship which sends Rambo through space, almost immediately arriving on Earth. He is found naked and unconscious lying on grass by the hospital. In the
233:
For
Crudelta, the conclusion of the panel of seven Lords of the Instrumentality is "He has many troubles ahead of him, and we wish to add to them." Rambo and Elizabeth are brought back to health and are free to continue their lives. Although their relationship has less intensity than formerly on
218:
Crudelta travels, by normal means, from Earth Four to Earth. Believing that Rambo might be a danger to humanity, he seizes troops and they enter the hospital. The leading soldiers turn and attack those behind. In two minutes of confusion, many people are killed. Rambo, asleep and unaware of his
222:
There is later a trial of Lord
Crudelta. He tells the Investigating Lord that he induced rage in Rambo by saying that Elizabeth was at the edge of death, so that he would want to come faster to Earth than anyone had done, to make him travel through space. He says he chose Earth Four to select
183:. The Lords and Ladies of the Instrumentality are benign but all-powerful. Their slogan is quoted in chapter 7 of "Drunkboat": "Watch, but do not govern; stop war but do not wage it; protect, but do not control; and first, survive!"
205:
Lord
Crudelta, wanting to experiment with sending a person through space-three (usually written as space), selects Artyr Rambo; he is in a hospital on Earth Four, anxious to find his lover Elizabeth. (The name "Artyr Rambo" is a
194:, in which vivid imagery is used to describe the experience of a drifting boat as it fills with water. In Cordwainer Smith's story, this becomes the experience of a man who is sent through a special form of space known as space.
167:
to match a pre-existing illustration, and the earlier story became a basis for "Drunkboat". "The
Colonel Came Back from the Nothing-at-All", in a revised version made in 1958, was first published in the collection
249:
called "Drunkboat" a "wild jungle of language" and a "tour de force" which was nonetheless "overwritten", noting that it is "full of awfully bad verse" (noting particularly the millennia-old
398:
230:
the ship.... I was the drunkboat myself", and he expresses the experience with striking imagery (taken from Arthur
Rimbaud's poem "Le Bateau ivre").
159:
The story was based on the writer's earlier "The
Colonel Came Back from the Nothing-at-All", which in 1955 had failed to find a publisher. In 1963,
393:
305:
373:
329:"Thinking about Cordwainer Smith", in The Wave in the Mind: Talks and Essays on the Writer, the Reader, and the Imagination
137:
328:
361:
211:
388:
269:
180:
109:
223:
someone, because it was a planet of explorers and adventurers where the rage level was already high.
226:
When Rambo testifies, he becomes articulate when he describes the journey through space; he says "I
286:
234:
Earth Four, he is happy: "A man who has been through space needs very little in life, outside of
340:
316:
207:
147:
8:
141:, a collection of five stories by Cordwainer Smith published in May 1965. It appeared in
308:
332:
291:
246:
126:
31:
355:
131:
122:
82:
66:
367:
219:
powers, had caused the troops nearest
Elizabeth to defend her against the rest.
250:
191:
187:
176:
160:
382:
281:
202:
The story is introduced as a famous legend, often recalled in later years.
39:
27:
336:
175:
Like other stories of
Cordwainer Smith, "Drunkboat" is part of a
151:, a complete collection of his short stories, published in 1993.
145:, a collection published in May 1979, and it was in
190:" ("The Drunken Boat"), a poem written in 1871 by
270:All the science fiction stories and all the books
380:
272:cordwainer-smith.com, accessed 19 August 2015.
399:Works originally published in Amazing Stories
253:which Lord Crudelta "laboriously" explains).
282:The Right Kind of Man for That Kind of Trip.
301:
299:
210:of "Arthur Rimbaud": "y" is the standard
290:#86 = Volume 29, Part 1 = March 2002, at
129:. It was first published in the magazine
296:
313:The Science Fiction of Cordwainer Smith
381:
374:Internet Speculative Fiction Database
322:
275:
135:in October 1963. It was included in
163:asked Smith to provide a story for
16:Short story by Cordwainer Smith
13:
14:
410:
394:Short stories by Cordwainer Smith
349:
38:
197:
179:, in a universe policed by the
125:short story by American writer
319:2001, accessed 23 August 2015.
263:
186:The story is partly based on "
170:The Instrumentality of Mankind
143:The Instrumentality of Mankind
1:
256:
154:
241:
7:
10:
415:
335:; originally presented at
181:Instrumentality of Mankind
110:Instrumentality of Mankind
105:
97:
89:
77:
72:
62:
54:
46:
37:
26:
21:
339:1994; published 2004 by
317:McFarland & Company
287:Science Fiction Studies
341:Shambhala Publications
238:going back to space."
148:The Rediscovery of Man
372:title listing at the
389:1963 short stories
309:Karen L. Hellekson
333:Ursula K. Le Guin
292:DePauw University
247:Ursula K. Le Guin
208:phonetic spelling
115:
114:
406:
343:
326:
320:
303:
294:
279:
273:
267:
127:Cordwainer Smith
98:Publication date
90:Publication type
42:
32:Cordwainer Smith
19:
18:
414:
413:
409:
408:
407:
405:
404:
403:
379:
378:
352:
347:
346:
327:
323:
304:
297:
280:
276:
268:
264:
259:
251:nonsense verses
244:
200:
165:Amazing Stories
157:
132:Amazing Stories
123:science fiction
83:Amazing Stories
67:Science fiction
17:
12:
11:
5:
412:
402:
401:
396:
391:
377:
376:
365:
351:
350:External links
348:
345:
344:
321:
295:
274:
261:
260:
258:
255:
243:
240:
199:
196:
192:Arthur Rimbaud
188:Le Bateau ivre
177:future history
161:Cele Goldsmith
156:
153:
113:
112:
107:
103:
102:
99:
95:
94:
91:
87:
86:
79:
75:
74:
70:
69:
64:
60:
59:
56:
52:
51:
48:
44:
43:
35:
34:
24:
23:
15:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
411:
400:
397:
395:
392:
390:
387:
386:
384:
375:
371:
370:
366:
363:
359:
358:
354:
353:
342:
338:
334:
330:
325:
318:
314:
310:
307:
302:
300:
293:
289:
288:
283:
278:
271:
266:
262:
254:
252:
248:
239:
237:
231:
229:
224:
220:
216:
213:
209:
203:
195:
193:
189:
184:
182:
178:
173:
171:
166:
162:
152:
150:
149:
144:
140:
139:
134:
133:
128:
124:
120:
111:
108:
104:
100:
96:
92:
88:
85:
84:
80:
76:
71:
68:
65:
61:
57:
53:
49:
45:
41:
36:
33:
29:
25:
20:
368:
356:
324:
312:
285:
277:
265:
245:
235:
232:
227:
225:
221:
217:
204:
201:
198:Plot summary
185:
174:
169:
164:
158:
146:
142:
136:
130:
118:
116:
101:October 1963
81:
78:Published in
138:Space Lords
73:Publication
28:Short story
22:"Drunkboat"
383:Categories
362:Faded Page
257:References
155:Background
369:Drunkboat
357:Drunkboat
337:Readercon
242:Reception
119:Drunkboat
364:(Canada)
212:phonetic
93:Magazine
63:Genre(s)
55:Language
306:Page 43
121:" is a
58:English
47:Country
106:Series
331:, by
284:, in
360:at
236:not
228:was
50:USA
30:by
385::
315:,
311:,
298:^
172:.
117:"
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
