The Last Word is a science fiction short story by Damon Knight. You can
read it online here. It begins,
The first word, I like to think, was “Ouch.” Some cave man, trying to knock a stone into better shape with another stone, slipped, hit his thumb – and there you are. Language.
I have an affection for these useless and unverifiable facts. Take the first dog. He, I feel sure, was an unusually clever but cowardly wolf, who managed to terrorise early man into throwing him a scrap. Early man himself was a terrible coward. Man and wolf discovered that they could hunt together, in their cowardly fashion, and there you are again. ‘Domesticated animals.’
I admit that I was lax during the first few thousand years. By the time I realised that Man needed closer supervision, many of the crucial events had already taken place. I was then a young – well, let us say a young fallen angel. Had I been older and more experienced, history would have turned out very differently.
...
...I'm waiting for the last word from #45.
ReplyDeleteThat'll _never_ come :(
DeleteI wasn't going to read the story, but then "fallen angel" caught my attention. Good read and seems so apropos for the time we are living in.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked it :)
DeleteI really like Damon Knight so I will try this one out.
ReplyDeleteThe man could _write_, couldn't he! Compelling stories.
DeleteThis sounds good, thanks! Valerie
ReplyDeleteHe's a good writer :)
DeleteI can envision sending Trump to that firestorm you showed. I might read this later, but right now, I'm playing catch up.
ReplyDeleteIndeed. But he ain't goin' anywhere *sigh* He's raising money for a 2024 run, so I hear.
DeleteInteresting, thanks for sharing! Hugs, Jo x
ReplyDeleteThat writer is always interesting :)
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