Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Three-Body Problem, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Technology, Progress, and Destruction
Scientific Discovery and Political Division
Trauma and Cyclical Harm
Theory vs. Lived Experience
History and Legacy
Summary
Analysis
Years later (8.6 earth years, to be precise), the princeps ordered a meeting of the Trisolaran government at the Pendulum monument. Through the freezing cold of a Chaotic Era, the princeps shut off the pendulum; since the pendulum had been designed to hypnotize God, turning it off was a way of thanking God. The princeps explained the good news. They had received a reply from earth—and the timing of the reply suggested that earth was located nearby, only four light-years away.
Rather than finding sustained meaning in faith, the residents of Trisolaris use their pendulum-based religion as merely one more trial-and-error attempt to solve a problem. So when another solution presents itself, the Trisolarans are able to almost immediately give up their faith, showing again their desire to be “numb” and rational above all else.
Themes
Before the Trisolarans could celebrate, however, the princeps went on. Having learned more about earth’s history, he had concluded that human technology was progressing very quickly. Therefore, even though humans were currently far behind Trisolarans in terms of technology, by the time the Trisolaran fleet reached earth, humanity could have far surpassed Trisolaran invention. In turn, humans could likely fend off any potential invasion.
Earlier, the Chinese government had discussed “saltatory” progress, in which science advances through giant, sudden “technology leaps.” Such a thing never occurs on Trisolaris—so even though at this moment the Trisolarans are more advanced than humans, that could quickly change because human history moves in these unpredictable fits and starts.
Themes
Still, the princeps was gratified to know that the message had come from a human (Ye), who was a traitor to her own species. With the help of these “alienated” human forces, the princeps felt it was possible to prepare earth for Trisolaran invasion. First and foremost, however, the princeps believed that Trisolarans must find a way to halt the progress of human science completely.
Rather than trying to progress in their own technology, the Trisolaran aliens hope to halt human advancement. Just like the tension over logging that Mike Evans observed, this line of thinking shows how competing groups would rather use their most advanced science for destruction rather than creation.
Themes
To stop humans from making any technological progress, the Trisolarans decided to turn a single proton into a giant supercomputer—a project they called Project Sophon. To do this, the princeps and his science consuls created a giant particle accelerator; they then unfolded a nine-dimensional proton structure into two dimensions, creating a giant surface area.
This is what Ding Yi had explained to Wang earlier: by unfolding a complex proton into its most spread-out form, the Trisolarans hope to be able to program onto the increased surface area as they would onto the circuit board of any computer.
Themes
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The first time the Trisolarans tried to unfold a proton into two dimensions, they accidentally unfolded the proton too far, and it became one- dimensional. The remnants of this failed experiment appeared in the Trisolaran atmosphere as thin strings of light. To the princeps’s dismay, his consuls justified this failure by explaining that “in scientific experiments, there has to be a process in which kinks are worked out.”
Throughout the Three-Body game, many of the science experiments have had tremendous human costs. Though the Trisolarans erase these failures as merely necessary “kinks,” each mistake potentially endangers thousands of individuals.
Themes
The second time the Trisolarans tried to unfold a proton into two dimensions, they failed again; this time, the proton became three-dimensional. Immediately after the experiment was conducted, giant geometric solids began to appear near the particle accelerator and float into the Trisolaran atmosphere. Even more disturbingly, these geometric shapes then morphed into eyes.
This is not the first time that the universe itself has appeared intelligent—something similar happened in the tri-solar syzygy section of the Three Body game. Just as humans have had to come to terms with the fact that there are other intelligent life forms in the universe, the Trisolarans must now understand that particles themselves can have thoughts and interiority (or in this case a kind of sight).
Themes
The princeps asked his science consuls whether the eyes were alive, and they replied that though the proton-eyes were not alive, they likely contained some kind of “intelligence” or “wisdom.” Suddenly, all of the many eyes began to merge into a single eye—and then that eye turned into a giant parabolic mirror. Realizing that this mirror had the potential to reflect the suns’ rays and thus destroy all of Trisolaris, the science consuls directed the princeps to get into his underground bunker.
This frightening passage parallels some of the tensest moments of the Cold War. In the process of inventing new technologies ostensibly to protect themselves, the Trisolarans put their entire society’s existence in danger—much as the United States and the Soviet Union did with nuclear weapons and mutually assured destruction.
Themes
At this moment, Trisolaris began to get even brighter and hotter as the mirror reflected the sun, forming a giant cone of light. But before Trisolaris was destroyed, the planet’s nuclear forces were able to split the mirror into many pieces, saving the Trisolarans from certain death. The princeps was nervous to try any more experiments, given how dangerous this one had been. Still, Trisolaris had no other hope for survival. With this in mind, the princeps gave his scientists one more chance to succeed at unfolding a 9-dimensional proton into two dimensions.
The Trisolarans are trapped between dangerous technology and dangerous nature—but because they have at least the illusion of control over technology, they choose what they see as the lesser of two evils. After all, science is perhaps the most essential way in which humans (and aliens) try to assert some measure of influence on their own history.
Themes
Before their next experiment, the princeps asked his science consuls if intelligent life had been destroyed in this latest try. The consuls explained that in fact, more than one entire microcosmos had been created and then demolished by the unfolding process. The princeps realized that, given how many particles are smashed every day in particle accelerators, thousands of microcosmos and civilizations had been destroyed. He wanted to publicize this fact to the other Trisolarans, so they could “face the destruction of Earth civilization with equanimity.”
If particles can contain intelligence, then intelligence is constantly being smashed and destroyed. And because the Trisolarans define life in terms of intelligence—and not in terms of feeling—they are able to justify the destruction of earth in theoretical terms. But for someone like the reader, who understands the value of emotion and beauty, this calculus is not so simple.
Themes
Meanwhile, the princeps learned that the alienated forces on earth were growing. But even as some humans wanted to help Trisolarans with their invasion, not all of the Trisolarans were united behind this common goal. Like listener 1379, many Trisolarans had become pacifists. For this reason, the princeps now wanted to control all the flow of information from earth to Trisolaris.
Just as the mere idea of the Trisolarans is proving tremendously divisive on earth (as in the “contact as symbol” theory), the knowledge of human beings is creating a similar divide on Trisolaris. And as with the warring factions in the ETO, the question is again what degree of violence and destruction is necessary once these two societies meet.
Themes
The third attempt to unfold a proton created another giant mirror—but this time, rather than reflecting light, the mirror reflected the entire planet of Trisolaris back to itself. This was all according to the science consuls’ plan. And indeed, soon after the giant mirror appeared, the consuls were able to wrap it around Trisolaris, creating a giant proton shell. Once the shell had formed, the science consuls could etch electronic circuits onto the proton, creating the supercomputer.
The unfolded proton is so giant that it is effectively the size of the planet itself; therefore, the only way for the scientists to work with it is for them to wrap it around their planet. Interestingly, this proton computer forms a strange counterpart to the human computer Wang and Von Neumann made in the Three Body video game.
Themes
But because the shell enclosed the entire planet, Trisolaris was shut off completely from the three suns—and a period of intense cold followed. Much of the population had to be dehydrated, and nearly everyone who remained worked in spaceships to etch circuits onto the proton shell. But, at last, the experiment was successful: the Trisolarans had successfully created a “sophon,” or a proton with wisdom. The scientists boasted that “this is the smallest artificial intelligence that we can make.”
Yet again, technology that could improve the future costs a great deal in the present (in this case, mass dehydrations). But the experiment is ultimately successful, and the “sophon” (a word that combines the Greek word sophia, or “wisdom,” with the word “proton”) is born.
Themes
The scientists began to give the sophon a series of commands, and the two-dimensional shape folded itself first into three dimensions, then into four, then five, then six. Once the proton had folded itself into six dimensions, it was able to see “the organs inside everyone, even the organs inside your organs.” One scientist explained that this is because “a sophon observing three-space from six-space is akin to us looking at a picture on a two-dimensional plane.”
In this passage, arguably one of the most technical sections in a novel full of them, the newly intelligent proton folds into so many dimensions that it begins to look on the three-dimensional figures in the same way that three-dimensional humans look at a painting and see all of the information contained within it. Even though the proton has always had this many dimensions, only now can it make sense of its surroundings in the same way a human might.
Themes
Creating the next three sophons was a much quicker and easier process, and eventually, the Trisolarans were ready to launch Sophon One and Two to earth. The sophons would immediately find the most powerful particle accelerators on earth and disrupt the accelerators, providing false or misleading results. When the particle accelerators smashed the sophons, several more sophons would be created, and these sophons could seek out yet more particle accelerators.
The particle accelerators were the exact machines that were confusing Yang Dong, ultimately driving her to suicide. Now, readers can realize that the laws of physics themselves never changed; rather, it was a successful deception on the part of the Trisolarans.
Themes
Because each of the sophons would be capable of multiplying and moving between particle accelerators, the Trisolarans would indeed be able to stop humanity from making any further discoveries in the deep structure of matter. Moreover, the sophons would be able to create other kinds of strange phenomena—including making messages (like letters or numbers) appear in developing photographs or in people’s retinas. And because two sophons would remain on Trisolaris, these sophons could communicate with their counterparts on earth, getting real-time updates about humanity’s progress (or lack thereof).
At last, many of the strange occurrences from earlier in the book are explained; in addition to the particle accelerator malfunctions, the sophons were also responsible for the bizarre countdown Wang Miao struggled with. But there is even more horrifying new information revealed here. Because the sophons can monitor anything and everything on earth, all of the actions at the Battle Command Center have already been reported back to Trisolaris. So humans have almost no agency over their own destiny—the Trisolarans have already won.
Themes
While Ye Wenjie finishes reading about the creation of the sophons, the people at the Battle Command Center meet to discuss what they have learned from the intercepted intelligence. Grimly, General Chang assesses that because of the sophons, humanity can no longer do anything without the Trisolarans knowing; the sophons essentially act as a set of “omnipresent eyes.” As soon as Chang reaches this conclusion, Trisolaris communicates with non-ETO humans for the first time. Just for a moment, the same message flashes across everyone in the Battle Command Center’s eyes: “You’re bugs!”
These two words, chilling on their own, are especially frightening for two reasons. First, the Trisolarans send this message at the exact moment that human beings are realizing what they know, demonstrating just how much Trisolaris can monitor what happens on earth. And second, the use of the term “bugs”—the very term Ye Wenjie had used a few days earlier—reflects the fact that the Trisolarans are monitoring earth over a long period of time and putting together what they learn. Whatever the ETO members believe, therefore, it is really the Trisolarans who are constructing and controlling the narrative—and the end result—of contact.
Themes
