In Mr Million's lesson in the library David says : " The abos are human because the are all dead." and then explains "If they were alive it would be dangerous to let them be human because they'd ask for things, but with them dead it makes it more interesting if they were, and the settlers killed them all."
Question: How can the abo's both be dead AND human?
I think that is a well worded response, Glenn. What strikes me in seeing this passage here is the bold expression that the Abos are all dead in the text. It reminds me of the scene in the third novella where they are referred to as being "animals". Wolfe rarely says anything about the Abos that give us any ground to stand on, to be sure of either their existence or their legacy.
I miss spending time reading and thinking about this book, too.
I miss this story so much! We're going to be on two recording hiatus this year and I should use one of them to read this first novella again just for the pleasure of it.
I think "human" here means "person" and not "homo sapiens." What David is talking about, then, is the colonialist perspective. People from Earth came to these planets and settled them. There was (maybe) a sentient species already living here. If they were still alive, the Earthers would have to other them in some way that minimized or even refused their personhood in order to justify and legitimize and morally excuse the occupation of these planets. But since they're all dead, it's alright to acknowledge that they were people ("human") and just blame the ancestors of four generations ago for having committed a genocide and theft that the present generation would certainly never commit.