Alex speaks a language no-one else alive understands. Well, we call him Alex, but we don’t know what he calls himself. He’s always refused to signal this.
It’s not that he has any hesitation about speaking. He will happily speak all day. Just that nobody knows what he’s saying. We detect pleasure, frustration, thoughtfulness and a range of other states. But the argument he’s advancing so passionately eludes us.
Today, though, Alex is silent. Is he angry? Sad? Or has he simply finished reciting the entire history of his race?
Friday fictioneers is a weekly challenge set by Rochelle Wisoff Fields to write a 100-word story in response to a photo prompt. You can find other stories here
Neil MacDonald Author 
Dear Neil,
I wonder if Alex is a frustrated as his listeners. An interesting character who left me wanting to know more.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thanks so much, Rochelle. Alex has probably adjusted to his life
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Is Alex an alien? Or human? Either way what an intriguing character.
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Thanks very much. Tannille
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I hope they recorded it. One day some linguistic expert will have a theory and probably translate it all completely wrong. Then Alex will be mad.
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There are extensive recordings. Also daily monitoring of Alex’s physiology, which has some unusual characteristics
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Intriguing piece, Neil, which strikes me as an allegory for many of us, who often feel we are failing to get our message across.
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Thanks so much. The sense of wasteland in the picture was indeed what inspired this tale of failed communication
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I think I recognize some current individuals in the news recently.
DJ
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No animals were hurt in the making of this story
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Sometimes what’s important is to get it said, not whether anyone listens to it. I found myself drawn to the poor creature.
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Some believe that what he was trying to tell them was his name.
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Maybe, Alex has decided to do away with talking and get into some action instead.
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Could be
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Excellent take on the prompt. Eloquence is strictly local, right?
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Thanks so much, Joshua
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All sorts of stories spin off of this character. You have drawn him perfectly, and left us wondering. Really good piece of writing.
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Thanks so much, LInda
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Excellent science fiction. You did a great job of conveying Alex’s nature as alien and yet familiar.
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Thanks so much, penny.
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Another engaging character, Neil, and this time in just a handful of words. I wanted to read on i.e. I was worried for Alex which is always a good start to a story.
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Maybe his battery ran out! An intriguing tale indeed.
‘Retribution’, my short story.
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Thanks so much, Keith
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Oh… I think he just got tired about all the stupid persons never grasping a thing… he already told them a thousand times…. (translated)
“My name is Ztrilitee and I come in peace if… if you just liste to me.”
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He may, of course, not be an alien
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Or, perhaps, he is waiting for a g’dam answer … 😉
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I think that’s likely
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I read it not as an alien but as a nonverbal or minimally verbal person, perhaps with autism. You have portrayed the reciprocal frustations of broken communication very well without condemning the speaker or calling him stupid. There is clearly much going on in that brain of his, like many with autism that i know.
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I didn’t think of him as an alien, or as someone nonverbal when I wrote him. I saw him as a person fluently speaking a language no-one else understands. But the author’s reading is only one possible version of a story
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True, Neil.
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Brilliant, reminded me weirdly and maybe not relevantly of the enigma of kasper hauser. I really don’t know why! Great stuff!!
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Thanks so much
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Intriguing, especially that he won’t give his name. Is he Rumplestiltskin? He’s his own person/entity in any case. I like the mystery surrounding him.
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Or perhaps the continuous speech for half a decade is just his name
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! Now that would be something.
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I enjoyed this very much, Neil. I can picture this person almost as a form of autistic person, with his own language.
I love how it came to an end, as well.
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Thanks so much, Dale. Autism is certainly a possible reading
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This evokes sympathy. Maybe, in his silence are his words. Very well written, Neil
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Thanks so much, Neel, Yes, silences can speak too. That may be the key to good flash fiction – making the silences speak
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An excellent piece. I wonder if Alex were trying to warn them of something with his arguments but then gave up. Very intriguing!
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Thanks so muchm Brenda. I like that reading
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A mysterious character. I wonder if he’ll ever speak again, and if he will ever be understood?
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My guess is he’d speak again if he was real, but as a fictional character, it would be so much better if he maintained an eloquent silence
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The story brings me sadness. Perhaps none of us really understand the other. Perhaps we all have our own esoteric personal languages.
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I think that’s the role of fiction. It allows us to enter another person’s head
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Good story, Neil. I enjoyed it. It leaves it to the reader’s imagination what the alien looks like. It would be frustrating to hear the language and see reactions without understanding anything. Well done. —- Suzanne
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Thanks, Suzanne. Alex may not be an alien
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I didn’t even think of that. That makes things a lot more interesting. —- Suzanne
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Alex sounds like a man with a mission. I use the term man loosely…
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I think he’s just doing what he has to
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Have you ever seen the movie District 9? Your story reminds me of that, only the aliens in the movie have been on earth for a long time and can communicate with humans.
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Yes I have seen it. Interesting resonance
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If Alex wants to communicate more he’ll have to learn their language – something I learned when I moved to a Spanish-speaking country!
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Perhaps the conventions and assumptions of English make so little sense to Alex he’s struggled to learn it and failed. If you speak Spanish you’ll know the way the world looks different with two different verbs “to be” where English only has one.
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Oh this is terribly sad. Poor Alex. Those fools can’t hear him. Great story, Neil
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Thanks so much, Laurie. To be fair to the fools, the language Alex is speaking bears no relationship to any known tongue
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All problems of human race has its beginning in not understanding what others are saying. This has extended to plants and animals. Because we don’t understand the pain of an animal, we feel happy to kill a deer or chop a tree.
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Thanks for reading
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Imagine if you were the last one of your race and you were talking to people who, even if they could speak your language, could never understand….at least that’s what I glean. Well done, Neil.
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That’s pretty close to what was in my mind. Thanks, Sascha
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Alex seems an enigma to me and would like to know more about him. Even if one doesnt understand Alex’s language , the frustrations etc are understood. This means there is some sort of communication going on.
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Thanks for reading.
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I really like the enigma at the heart of your story. Alex’s need to speak, even if others don’t understand him. Waiting at airports, I marvel at all these languages I hear which mean nothing to me.
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Alex desperately needs to speak. But nobody knows why
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If it’s not a post-apocalyptic tale (Aliens trying to make sense of what the last human is saying), then I’m going for 800 “What Did the Last Indigenous Tribesman Say?”, Alex.
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Both are possible readings. Thanks, Stu
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Interesting. One wonders why he hasn’t made more of an effort to learn the language or teach his own.
Hmmmmm
Good story…makes you think!
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If I’d had more space, I’d have explored exactly that question
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When there is dialogue; there is an opportunity of understanding – silence spells danger.
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Alex tried dialogue. Nothing happened
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Absolutely beautiful and exquisite. There is a book by Han Shaogong in which he writes “language isn’t something to be sneezed at, it’s a dangerous thing we need to defend ourselves against and handle with respect. Language is a kind of incantation, a dictionary is a kind of Pandora’s Box capable of releasing a hundred thousand spirits and demons. ” This reminded me of that.
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Thanks so much, and thanks for the interesting reference
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