The Difference Engine

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The Difference Engine

Cover of first edition (hardcover)
Author	William Gibson and Bruce Sterling
Language	English
Genre	Alternate history, steampunk
Publisher	Victor Gollancz Ltd
Publication date	September 1990
Publication place	United States
Media type	Print (hardback and paperback)
Pages	383 pp (Paperback – 429 pages)
ISBN	0-575-04762-3
OCLC	21299781

The Difference Engine (1990) is an alternative history novel by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling.^{[not verified in body]} It is has been described as an early work of the steampunk genre,^[1] and is regarded as having helped to establish that genre's conventions.^{[not verified in body]}

It posits a Victorian-era Britain in which great technological and social change has occurred after the mechanical computers of Charles Babbage make widespread impact, there and globally, resulting in historical individuals taking on markedly different roles (Lord Byron instead surviving the Greek War of Independence to lead Britain, the late Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli instead becoming a tabloid writer, etc.), and European and American continents of markedly different political dispositions (e.g., the United States being, rather, several competing nations).

The novel received nominations for several major science fiction awards in the years following its publication, and has been the subject of continuing scholarly interest for its approach to history and particular historical characters, and for its relationship to the novel, Sybil.

This section needs attention from an expert in English. The specific problem is: to move the hidden plot-material that might follow to the actual Plot section, and to re-add hidden, unsourced, essay-like WP:OR material for which sources can be found, such that the section complies with MOS:NOVELS guidance in presenting Background that presents a "history of the novel's writing and development" that "report[s] the writings of significant and reliable sources". WikiProject English may be able to help recruit an expert. (May 2025)

The Difference Engine has been described as an early work of the steampunk genre.^[2][1] The novel "takes the reader to London in 1855 where an Industrial Revolution unlike any seen in a history book is in full swing".^{[2][better source needed]} Matt Mitrovich, writing for AmazingStories.com, describes it—rather than as a novel—as being a "collection of three short stories and several snippets at the end all connected by a box of punch... cards [Engine cards]...", narrated in those stories by a distinct trio of POV characters: first, Sybil Gerard, daughter of an earlier executed Luddite agitator, drawn into a conspiracy involving an alt history Sam Houston, here a "Texian"—a repurposed term meaning, in history, residents of former province of Tejas, New Spain, and its later derivative political entities^[3]—Houston now exiled and in London; second, the esteemed "savant" paleontologist and alt history discoverer of Brontosaurus, Edward “Leviathan” Mallory, serially attacked to attempt retrieval of a parcel with which Mallory is entrusted; and third, a fictional representation of Laurence Oliphant, still a spy and diplomat, but introduced as Mallory's protector, who continues in the final story to pursue investigations into earlier events in the book.^[1]

First Iteration. The Angel of Goliad.^[4] In 1855, Sybil Gerard, going by the name of Sybil Jones, daughter of an executed Luddite leader, is a dolly-mop targeting respectable gentlemen, and is recruited by one, Mick Radley, a secretary to an alt historical Sam Houston, to assist Mick in support of Houston's cause in Britain. Mick has confronted Sybil regarding her hidden past, says she is no longer a dolly-mop, but rather is now Mick's " 'prentice adventuress", although Sybil remains with mixed feelings regarding him. Mick is a schemer with two ongoing plays, a set of punch cards that purport to encode a betting system, or "modus", and a second set of "kino[punch]-cards" encoding visuals for a presentation. Before one of Houston's speeches, Mick has Sybil send the betting system set on to Paris. Meanwhile, Houston is preparing to give one of a series of presentations in support of his hoped for return to Texas, presentations that in this era require support of a "kinotropist" and kino-cards. (This technician operates a mechanical screen that projects card-encoded images generated by an Engine [mechanical computer] during presentations.) Mick has surreptitiously laid hands on the kino-punch card set needed by Houston's kinotropist, and so Mick has been of value to Houston. To disenfranchise Mick, Houston steals that card set, and Mick enlists Sybil to steal them back again. Sybil distracts the hotel concierge by composing in his presence a telegram to Charles Egremont, an MP and a former lover, boldly confronting him for his past abusive behavior around the time of her father's death; Mick uses the diversion to obtain the key to Houston's hotel room. Sybil, acting alone, gains access to the room and finds a Texian assassin lying in wait to kill Houston. He interrogates Sybil, and disarms, knifes, and murders Mick when he arrives. When Sam Houston arrives, the Texian thrice discharges Mick's small pepper-box pistol into him, direly wounding him, ruining a punch card set Houston has tucked in his waistband, and breaking Houston's heavy, raven-headed cane. The assassin escapes after breaking a window, Sybil assigning him the monikor of "Angel of Goliad"; Houston appears to be dying, but readers are left unclear as to his fate. Sybil finds a missing fortune, taken from Texas by Houston, a spill of large diamonds from the hollow cane, which she retrieves (along with Paris tickets from Mick's dead person). Mick Radley dead, Sybil departs alone for Paris, and some indication is given that Houston may too have survived.

Second Iteration. Darby Day. Edward Mallory, a palaeontologist and explorer, while visiting his friends participating in a gurney race derby, encounters Lady Ada Byron being mistreated by a man and a woman. After Mallory fights the man and woman over their treatment of Lady Byron, she gives Mallory a case containing punch cards and returns to her family. Mallory hides the case in the skull of the exhibit of the dinosaur he discovered, the Brontosaurus. The man, fashioning himself 'Captain Swing', threatens to 'destroy' Mallory unless he returns the punch cards. As part of his attempts, Swing spreads rumours that Mallory was responsible for the death of Mallory's rival, Rudwick.

Third Iteration. Dark Lanterns. Laurence Oliphant meets Mallory to offer him police protection. Oliphant argues Rudwick died as a result of a conspiracy and Mallory could be the next target, given that both received sponsorship for their research work in return for supplying arms to Native American tribes thereby checking the expansionist ambitions of the United States. Mallory agrees to Oliphant's offer after he is tailed and attacked. With the help of Andrew Wakefield, Oliphant's contact at the Central Bureau of Statistics, Mallory identifies Florence Bartlett, the woman he saw with Lady Byron at the derby. It is suggested that Bartlett brought the case of punch cards that Sybil Gerard had sent to France back to England. Mallory sends Lady Byron a letter which reveals where the case of punch cards is hidden. "The Stink", a major episode of pollution in which London swelters under an inversion layer (comparable to the London Smog of December 1952), causes much of London's elite to leave the city. Mallory is accompanied by Ebenezer Fraser, a secret police officer, as he goes about his business in the city, but Fraser is wounded after confronting a gang of youthful looters, as civil order begins to break down.

Fourth Iteration. Seven Curses. Mallory leaves Fraser at the police station and meets Hetty, another courtesan who knew Sybil. Mallory spends the night with Hetty in Whitechapel, and leaves the next morning to notice that the persisting Stink has led to further collapse of order in the city. Making his way back to the Palace of Palaeontology, he notices advertisements, commissioned by Swing, that claim Mallory murdered Rudwick and decry the excesses of the rule of savants. After meeting his brothers at the Palace and hearing that their sister's engagement was broken thanks to rumours spread about her infidelity by Swing, Mallory gathers them and Fraser, who has recovered, to attack Swing. They infiltrate Swing's location, noting that communists from Manhattan are supporting him. After recognising Florence Bartlett as a lecturer among them, Mallory and his group fight them off until rain ends the Stink and a river ironclad fires at Swing's location. Fraser apprehends Swing.

Fifth Iteration. The All Seeing Eye. A year later, Oliphant has persistent visions of the Eye, as he pursues his investigations into the disorder accompanying The Stink. He identifies the assassin responsible for murdering Mick Radley and Rudwick, having been himself poisoned by Bartlett. After the Prime Minister, Lord Byron, died during the Stink and was replaced by Brunel, Charles Egremont has started removing rivals from his way to hide his past as a one-time associate of Sybil Gerard's father, having betrayed him to his death. Florence Bartlett is informed by Lady Byron of the location of the case of cards, but is killed in a firefight with policemen and soldiers as she tries to escape. Oliphant secures the telegram Sybil sent Egremont with Wakefield's help, but one of Oliphant's officers is captured by members of an agency affiliated with Egremont. Oliphant heads for Paris himself to meet Sybil, intending to get her testimony with which to blackmail Egremont. It is revealed that the case of punch cards, when sent to Paris, was run through France's equivalent Engine by an independent 'clacker', causing it to keep attempting to solve the programme but failing, leading to it appearing to malfunction. The punch cards contain proof of two theorems, which, in reality, would not be discovered until 1931 by Kurt Gödel. Lady Byron delivers a lecture on the subject in France, with the narrator describing her as 'The Mother'. She is chaperoned by Fraser while Sybil, who attended her lecture, mocks her afterwards. The narrative then reveals that a vast Engine, in 1991, is simulating the lives of humans that preceded its existence to produce new conclusions. This Engine reveals itself to be the narrator as it achieves self-awareness, its Eye examining the records of people, documents, and artefacts.

This section needs expansion with: a formal, full presentation of the novel's characters as presented by published secondary sources. You can help by adding to it. (May 2025)

• Sybil Jones / Sybil Gerard,^{[citation needed]} POV narrator in the First Iteration, daughter of an executed Luddite leader and so with a hidden past, recruited by one to assist Sam Houston's cause,^[1] her aim of becoming a " 'prentice adventuress" shortshrifted, but ending with her en route to Paris with Sam Houston's Texian riches.^{[citation needed]}
• Mick Radley, an ill-fated schemer,^{[citation needed]} Sybil's recruiter, secretary to Sam Houston in the First Iteration, assisting Houston in his cause to return to Texas to raise an army, seeking to capitalize on his possession of two sought-after punch card sets,^[1] one of kino-cards, the other purportedly for a gamblers "modus".^{[citation needed]}
• Sam Houston, an alt historical, fictional representation of the historic character, still a warrior, in the FIrst Iteration, a "Texian" now exiled and in London,^[1] and perceived to have absconded with Texian riches;^{[citation needed]}
• Edward “Leviathan” Mallory, POV narrator introduced in the Second Iteration, esteemed "savant" paleontologist and alt history discoverer of Brontosaurus, pursued and attacked in Iteration Three to attempt retrieval of the parcel with which Mallory is entrusted; in Iteration Four, he takes the battle to Swing in his headquarters.^[1]
• Laurence Oliphant, an alt historical, fictional representation of the historic character, still a spy and diplomat, introduced as Mallory's protector in the Third Iteration, and continues as the POV narrator in the Fifth to pursue investigations into earlier events in the book.^[1]

The characters of Sybil Gerard, her father, Walter Gerard, Charles Egremont, and Mick Radley are borrowed from Benjamin Disraeli's novel Sybil.^{[according to whom?][citation needed][5][full citation needed]} Sterling has reported that the novel's Michael Godwin character was named after attorney Mike Godwin, as thanks for his assistance in linking Sterling and Gibson's computers, allowing their collaboration between Austin and Vancouver.^{[6][page needed]}

This section needs expansion with: a more thorough presentation of the both review and critical-scholarly receptions of this novel, based especially on syntheses (secondary and tertiary sources). You can help by adding to it. (May 2025)

The novel was nominated for the British Science Fiction Award in 1990,^[7] the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1991,^[8] and both the John W. Campbell Memorial Award and the Prix Aurora Award in 1992.^[9]

This section relies largely or entirely on a single source. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. Find sources: "The Difference Engine" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (May 2025)

In a non-contemporaneous review, Matt Mitrovich, writing for AmazingStories.com, describes The Difference Engine as "a rich and imaginative glimpse at a world dealing with the opportunities and pitfalls that come with advanced technology", describing it as written in "superb prose [that] helps paint a gritty, but believable setting", and applauding the novel's presentation of realistic, flawed characters, and the authors' "amazing depth of knowledge about the culture and technological capabilities of the era".^[1]

The novel has attracted the attention of scholars. Jay Clayton explores the book's attitude toward hacking, and its treatment of Charles Babbage and Ada Lovelace.^[10] Herbert Sussman argues that in the The Difference Engine, Gibson and Sterling rewrite Benjamin Disraeli's novel Sybil.^[11] Brian McHale relates this work to postmodern interest in finding a "new way of 'doing' history in fiction."^[12]

The 1993 video game The Chaos Engine (released as Soldiers of Fortune in the USA) was based on The Difference Engine.^[13]

• Kraus, Elisabeth (1997). "Gibson and Sterling's Alternative History: The Difference Engine as Radical Rewriting of Disraeli's Sybil". Node9 [E-Journal of Writing and Technology]. 1. Archived from the original on 16 December 2001. Retrieved 3 May 2025.

• The Difference Dictionary, an dictionary of the novel's topics compiled and edited by writer Eileen Gunn
• The Difference Engine at Worlds Without End
• Review at Infinity-plus
• Editions of The Difference Engine at WorldCat.org