science et fiction cybernétiques Pierre Cassou

N. Wiener et W. Norbert : science et fiction cybernétiques
Pierre Cassou-Noguès
I. Le problème
- Pourquoi Wiener écrit-il des fictions ou, disons pour inclure son autobiographie, des textes
littéraires ? Quel rôle a la fiction, la littérature, par rapport à la science ? Comment se distinguent et
se définissent l'une par rapport à l'autre écritures scientifiques et littéraires ? Selon l'auteur lui-même
– dans les textes qu'il consacre à cette question – et dans son oeuvre effective. Ce sont deux
perspectives différentes, parce que l'auteur peut ne pas comprendre lui-même le rôle qu'il se trouve
donner à la fiction dans son oeuvre.
- L'auteur des fictions prend un pseudonyme W. Norbert. On peut interroger donc N. Wiener sur les
relations entre science et fiction mais on peut également interroger W. Norbert, c'est-à-dire tenter de
déterminer dans les fictions – et contre ce que peut affirmer le savant lui-même – le statut de la
science, de l'écriture scientifique et la position du savant par rapport à celles-ci.
II. Science et fiction
II. 1. Comment distinguer la science et la science-fiction ?
“But there is a more serious point. In this period in which the life and death of the human race
depends on a correct evaluation of certain very definite problems thrust upon us by the development
of technique, and in which the channels of scientific communication have been fouled up by secrecy
and by the policy of superorganization of science, it is of vital importance for our survival that we
learn how to distinguish between science as a going concern and popular babbling about science.
The emotion which has gone into such phony pieces of journalism as the book on the flying saucers
represents an amount of emotion which has been sated, and which no longer is at our disposal in
facing the very vital question of just how much we are to incur the risk of permanently poisoning
the atmosphere by atomic warfare. In short, science fiction has led to an inflation of the ego of the
average escape reader by convincing him that he is thinking in the newest, most precise, and most
scientific terms when in fact he is doing nothing of the sort. Actually, there is more relevant
thought for the human problems of the new age of science in the old folklore of fairies and magic
than there is in this entire new venture in journalism. The problems of the three wishes, of the
magician's apprentice, and the like, gain nothing in poignancy by being dressed up in pseudoscientific verbiage. It is better for people not to think that space suits and interplanetary travel
constitute science. And if they do not know that science is primarily a way of thought and a
response to problems, it is far better that they do not fool themselves by treating science as the
latest mumbo-jumbo of the witch doctor.” A. Martin Greenberg, Nov. 19 1959 (11/159)
- La science n'est pas caractérisée par une propriété intrinsèque (la rationalité, le formalisme) mais,
par rapport à la science-fiction, par une sorte de sérieux que la littérature contemporaine ne réussit
pas à produire, à la différence d'une littérature antérieure (de la fin du XIXe siècle). Il n'existe pas
en fait de différence nette entre science et fiction, qui sont susceptibles d'être confondues. C'est
pourquoi Wiener a besoin d'un pseudonyme pour ses fictions : il ne faut pas qu'on les confonde avec
son travail scientifique.
“I still prefer to have the rather non-concealing pseudonym used for my stories just because it is
non-concealing. In other words, I have no objection to letting the public know that I do stories of
this genre, but I wish for future contingencies to make a clear distinction between the work that I
publish as a scientist and as an objective observer, and the stories I publish for the pure fun of it. Of
course, up to now there has been no possibility of confusion. But in the future I may either do a
piece of scientific work which might be confused possibly with science-fiction, or some sort of hoax
which might endanger my scientific reputation if it came out under my name. I have no objection to
having people know that Norbert Wiener is the author of these stories, but I want some trademark
on them that will distinctly separate them from my professional work.” A Groff Conklin June 1,
1953 (12/174)
“Both of my stories appeared under the pseudonym W. Norbert, which is as you see completely
transparent. My notion of the purpose of pseudonyms is not to conceal my identity but to make a
sharp separation between my serious and my light work. Even this separation is not absolute, for it
is not my intention to write anything which does not express albeit obliquely my real opinions.” A
J.V.L. Hogan, Jul 9, 1954 (13/196).
II. 2 Les fictions scientifiques.
- L'absence de différence nette entre science et fiction conduit à Wiener à chercher dans la
littérature des fictions scientifiques, qui illustrent une théorie scientifique, mais aussi à introduire
dans cette science qu'est la cybernétique des éléments qui relèvent de la science-fiction et sont
repris par la science-fiction.
- L'imagination littéraire (E. Nesbit, « The Amulet »)
- A l'intérieur même de la cybernétique. La cybernétique est une science :
“I have heard reports that your translation of my Cybernetics is extremely good. [...] As to whether
cybernetics is a new science or a new fiction, I am sufficiently prejudiced to believe that it is a new
science.” A G. H. Povarov, March 18 1960 (19/276).
Mais elle comporte des éléments qui évoquent la science-fiction : l'homme « téléphoné », le robot.
Par exemple, sur la couverture de HUHB :
“A great scientist discusses what man's robot partner might mean to him in the mechanized world of
tomorrow.”
II. 3. La science-fiction
- Wiener prend une certaine distance vis à vis de la science-fiction contemporaine mais il ne lui
reproche qu'un manque (accidentel) de rigueur scientifique.
“In my childhood, I was devotee of Jules Verne. In my early years of maturity I was a devotee of
H.G. Wells. I am therefore what might be considered a reasonable prospect for an interest in science
fiction. Unfortunately, the mushrooming development of science fiction in the recent past has
repelled me, and I am in no way disposed to write a preface for an anthology on this subject.” A.
Martin Greenberg, Nov. 19 1959 (11/159)
“However, I am afraid that I am not too much a devotee of science fiction. It is a milieu which
seems to me to have a very limited scope and technique, so that one almost knows from the title of a
book exactly what to expect.” A A. G. Hansen, Jr, Jan 13 1955 (14/207)
“One of the curses of the science fiction racket of the present day is the way in which it attempts to
give large numbers of people the conviction that they are doing scientific work or reading about
science when they are really reading about something quite different.” A Arnold B Larson, Dec 12,
1958 (18/255)
Asimov seul échappe à la critique de Wiener (“It is Mr. Azimov whom I should like as a
collaborator.” A Jason Epstein, Feb.10 1960 (19/273))
III. Une oeuvre littéraire parallèle
- « Priority »
- « The Miracle of the Broom Closet » (1952) : Sebastian versus « the Boss »
- « The Brain » (1950) : Dr. Cole versus « the Boss » ou « the Brain »
- « The Day of the Dead » (1952) : Smythe, Vasquez, the « Boss »,
- L'autobiographie : Ex-prodigy (1953) et I am a mathematician (1956)
- « A Scientist Reappears » (1954) : De Gratiansky versus Posner
- The Tempter (1959)
- « Under the Stone » (1960) : Haym Moskowitz, les céréales Crunch, Cedric Fanshaw
Ces textes font régulièrement apparaître les mêmes thèmes. J'en évoquerai trois.
IV. L'opposition entre le « bon » et le « mauvais » savant.
- Toutes les fictions de Wiener – ou de Norbert – mettent en scène une opposition entre un « bon »
et un « mauvais » savant.
- Dans « The Day of the Dead »
“Dr. Smythe – a visiting American physician who is the head of the American Scientific Society.
He is on an inspection trip to the labs with his fat, pompous, pseudo-socialite wife. He is rather
short, fat, mostly bald with a thin mustache and glasses. He wears an expensive and well-tailored
suit with a boutoniere and has an entirely condescending attitude towards all people.” (“The Day of
the Dead”, Cast of Characters)
Dr. Rodriguez – the head of the laboratories. He is 50 years old but looks younger. He is dynamic,
exacting, stern, but with an excellent sense of humor. He does his best work pacing back and forth
like a caged lion. He is affectionately nick-named 'the slave driver' but is known to drive himself
harder than anyone else.” (“The Day of the Dead”, Cast of Characters)
Dr. Rodriguez est sans doute A. Rosenblueth, Dr. Smythe serait-il J. von Neumann, déguisé par une
moustache et des lunettes ?
- Dans « A Scientist Disappears » :
De Gratiansky, décrit par Posner. “At first I had been rather pleased by his apparent openness, his
enthusiasms, and his social gifts. He had come from a family which had been well to do, and
somewhere on the outer edge of the old aristocracy, but his family had come down in the world and
their tastes had not. He had taught me all I ever came to know of good food, good drink and
pleasant life, and it almost escaped my attention that I was paying for many things of which he was
the beneficiary.”
De Gratiansky pourrait être rapproché de S. Ulam, dont Wiener avoue ailleurs lui devoir toute sa
connaissance des bons vins.
- Le mauvais savant est vénal. On l'a vu dans le cas de De Gratiansky mais c'est également le cas de
Cedric dans l'opposition à Haym.
“Cedric had been destined for an academic career, and in fact was an instructor ??? at a New Jersey
College. However, he found that the salary of a young instructor did not enable him to satisfy his
taste for urbane and civilized living, nor did he find the humdrum existence of his colleagues
enough to quench his desire for a more prominent position in the public eye.” (“Under the Stone”)
- La sainteté de « bon » savant. Le bon savant, de son côté, est régulièrement décrit comme
« saint ». En fait, la première nouvelle de Wiener oppose le « saint » et le savant :
“At any rate, the moral of this little tale, if there is any moral, is that saint and scientist should each
stick to his own business.” (“The Miracle of the Broom Closet”)
Cependant, ce vocabulaire revient dans les textes ultérieurs. Ainsi, dans “A Scientist Reappears”,
Posner est devenu opticien et passe l'essentiel de son temps à polir des verres de lunettes, ce qui
n'est pas sans rappeler Spinoza : “Spinoza was a saint” (A H. Simon, Oct. 5, 1953).
De même,
“It was a new world, De Gratiansky said [...]. The days of the saints were over for the scientist and
the new scientists were to be the bishops and the popes.”
- Des éléments assez proches apparaissent quand Wiener décrit sa propre vocation scientifique.
“ I am a scientist [...] It means to me a worship of intellectual honesty and of Truth, a willingness to
subordinated personal advantage to these, and a desire to do creative work so strong that it takes
precedence over all other impulses.” A C. Lomnitz, dec 5 1952 (11/160)
“If I had lived then [around 1800], I would probably have been a long bearded rabbi, very possibly
the grand rabbi of a Polish province, and I would have written a commentary on the Kabala,
perhaps with special reference to the Golem – instead of helping to design Golems.” A Y. R. Chao,
June 15, 1953 (12/175)
V. La vivisection.
- Autre thème, plus inattendu, qui réapparaît régulièrement dans les écrits littéraires de Wiener : la
fascination pour l'opération chirurgicale, la vivisection.
- Dans Ex-prodigy
“I have left copy of the last version of my manuscript with my psychiatrist, Dr. Janet Rioch, for
comment and criticism. On the whole her reaction is very favorable but she suggests that I leave out
the vivisection episode and that I do not identify the New Yorker by name.” A H. Simon (10/155)
- Dans « The Brain »
- Dans « The Day of the Dead »
“'Let me see how you are getting on.' He turned back Smythe's eyelids and peered into the pupils.
He felt the muscles of his guest which had turned unaccountably flabby. The guest made a few
frustrated motions as if he wished to sit upright, and some inarticulate sounds came from his mouth.
Vasquez busied himself in undressing Smythe's chest and in strapping on the set of metallic
electrodes [...] Then he took down another set of electrodes and after carefully examining Smythe's
head for the proper anatomical landmarks, he adjusted these into position on a sort of skeleton cap.
Then he sat down on a comfortable chair, drew out his cigar case, and lit a luxurious looking
Havana cigar. He took one or two luxurious puffs.”
“He uses his victim in my story as material for a piece of human vivisection to test out a new
variant of curare which can be taken by mouth.” (A G. Conklin, June 15, 1953).
- Il faut noter que la vivisection est une opération sympathique, toujours opérée par le « bon »
savant.
“Cole said nothing. They gave him $50,000. The Brain started mumbling through his bandages.
'Give him $100,000 boys, I feel fine.'” (“The brain)
“Dr. Tenorio : a man in his middle thirties, Latin-American, dark, very good looking, has a large
mustache of which he is very proud, pleasantly arrogant, always lighthearted, without any trace of
seriousness. [...] He is a man whom one cannot help liking, whatever he does.” (“The Day of the
Dead”, Cast of Characters).
VI. L'aspect autobiographique
- Enfin, les fictions de Norbert font régulièrement intervenir un savant qu'il est difficile de ne pas
rapprocher de Wiener. L'oeuvre littéraire semble être presque tout entière autobiographique.
- Warschauer dans “The Day of the Dead” : “ ... was a visiting mathematician from the States and
was working together with the Boss on some utterly incomprehensible problems of neuro-physics.
[...] Warschauer was pouring over a sheet of paper covered with even more of these symbols. He
was a thick set, bearded, absent-minded Yanki professor, but at least he knew that Mexico was still
the property of the Mexicans. He got up as Vasquez came in. Vasquez performed the rite of the
Mexican abrazo with an unctuous effectiveness [...] Warschauer accepted the abrazo with a
perfunctory smile.”
- Woodbury (alias Heavyside) dans “The Tempter”
“I do not intend to play the part of Woodbury in any sort of movie, television or dramatic
production of my book. [...] Cross-tempered I may be, but non of the other characteristics belong to
me. [...].
PS. I want to emphasize that it is very important that I should not put myself in the false position of
being identified with any of the characters in my novel. This could be dangerous from the libel
point of view and would give my colleagues an entirely wrong impression of where I think I stand
in respect to my work. It just can't be done.” A G. Wilson, Nov. 2. 1959 (19, 267)
- L'enfant prodige, Haym Moskowitz, dans “Under the Stone”.
“I cannot deny, however, that Freud has turned over the stone of the human mind, and has shown a
great population of pale and photophobic emotional creatures scuttling back into their holes.” (Exprodigy, Preface)
- Double position de Wiener dans « A Scientist Disappears » :
Le narateur : “I am a scientist of roving interests [...] I have been working on the more abstract parts
of the field of the design of automatic factories.”
Posner : “When I became aware that my work was likely to lead humanity to the brink of the abyss
and over it as well, I had an emotion of deep shock. The natural way that belonged to the of my
existence [sic] was closed to me, and any attempt to mold my scientific life in such a manner as to
avoid that decision, had something unreal about it”
On peut rapprocher ce passage et la fuite de Posner de l'incertitude de Wiener quant à la suite de son
travail scientifique après l'usage par les Etats-Unis de la bombe atomique.
VII. La science anonyme et la fiction autobiographique ?
- Quels sont les relations entre science et fiction, leurs rôles respectifs ?
- Il faut d'abord souligner l'importance accordée à la fiction
“I have not received the publisher's copy yet, but as my daughter suffers from addiction to the habitforming literature which constitutes your field of activity, she has already brought home the Permabook edition of Crossroads in Time, which I am immodestly displaying to my friends [pour The
brain ...]. As to The miracle of the broom closet, look up Anthony Boucher in Berkeley (the
Magazine of Fantasy and Science-fiction), and I found his personality ingratiating, even though I
found his long hair and bare feet a little theatrical. A Groff Conklin, Nov. 16 1953 (12/182)
- Nous avons vu le caractère essentiel autobiographique de l'oeuvre littéraire. La lecture vers
laquelle nous dirige Wiener, dans une lettre à son éditeur, H. Simon, du 5 octobre 1953, serait la
suivante. La pure science est, en elle-même et dans le contexte contemporain, réductrice et
anonyme. Elle ne permet pas à l'homme entier de s'exprimer. Elle doit donc être complétée par une
oeuvre parallèle, littéraire et politique.
“I say these things and I have written my book because there is something in me that demands that I
speak and that I write.”
“I have worked into the austere and exacting medium of mathematics, whose beauty is displayed by
its carrying of cold logic into significant and compelling forms, but I have done this as a man with
warmth in my veins, even as the soul of the sculptor need not be confined by the coolness and
hardness of the marble which he shapes.”
“The present age is a Byzantine Age, and age of epigony, and it shares Byzantium's hatred for and
fear of the whole man. Byzantium found its officials among the mutilated chamberlains of the royal
wardrobe. We aim our knife more directly at the brain. A form of frontal lobotomy, per hatpin, has
become an office procedure of psychiatrists, and this disrespect for the integrity of the brain in those
whom society regards as misfits is merely the grotesquer extension of a policy which feed its
scientists with just so much half-knowledge as will make them subservient agents for policy
formulated by our real heroes, the businessmen, and threatens them with dire penalties if they
presume to think of the nature and consequences of the destructive policies which they are
commanded to enforce.”
- C'est la position de N. Wiener. Il reste à interroger celle de W. Norbert.