The Eyes Have It
Author: Philip K. Dick
Genre: Science Fiction Short Story
Publication: 1953
Plot Overview
The story is told from the first-person perspective of a narrator who discovers what appears to be evidence of an alien invasion while reading a discarded book. The narrator becomes increasingly paranoid as he interprets ordinary human expressions and activities as proof that aliens have infiltrated Earth.
Key Events
The Discovery: The narrator finds a paperback book and begins reading it. As he reads, he notices strange phrases that seem to describe bizarre alien behavior disguised as normal human activities.
Growing Paranoia: The narrator becomes convinced that the book contains coded evidence of an alien takeover. He interprets phrases like “his eyes fell” and “she turned on her heel” as literal descriptions of aliens whose body parts detach and move independently.
The Investigation: Driven by his suspicions, the narrator decides to investigate further. He observes people around him, looking for signs of this alleged alien behavior.
The Revelation: The story builds to a climactic moment where the narrator confronts what he believes is definitive proof of the alien presence.
Central Theme
Paranoia and Misinterpretation: The story is a masterful exploration of how paranoid thinking can twist innocent, everyday language into something sinister. Dick demonstrates how a disturbed mental state can transform common figures of speech into evidence of conspiracy.
Literary Technique
Unreliable Narrator: The entire story hinges on the narrator’s misunderstanding of common English idioms and expressions. What he interprets as evidence of alien activity are simply everyday figures of speech like “lending a hand,” “keeping an eye on things,” or “getting a leg up.”
Dramatic Irony: Readers gradually realize that the narrator is misinterpreting metaphorical language as literal descriptions, creating a darkly humorous effect as his paranoia escalates.
The Twist
The brilliance of the story lies in its revelation that there are no aliens at all. The narrator has been reading perfectly normal human dialogue and descriptions, but his paranoid mindset has caused him to interpret common idiomatic expressions as evidence of extraterrestrial beings whose body parts can detach and function independently.
Significance
Philip K. Dick’s Style: This early work showcases Dick’s talent for psychological horror and his fascination with questions of reality and perception. It’s a precursor to his later, more famous explorations of paranoia and uncertain reality.
Social Commentary: The story serves as a subtle commentary on McCarthyism and the paranoid atmosphere of 1950s America, where people were encouraged to see communist infiltrators everywhere.
Mental Health: The story also functions as a portrayal of mental illness, specifically showing how paranoid delusions can make an individual reinterpret reality in frightening ways.
Conclusion
“The Eyes Have It” is a clever, compact story that works on multiple levels - as science fiction, psychological horror, and social satire. Dick’s genius lies in gradually revealing that the narrator’s fears are entirely self-generated, created by a mind that has lost the ability to distinguish between literal and figurative language. The story serves as both an entertaining twist tale and a deeper examination of how paranoia can transform the mundane world into something terrifying.
The title itself is a pun - while it seems to refer to the “eyes” of the supposed aliens, it actually refers to the old expression “the ayes have it,” suggesting that the narrator’s affirmative interpretation of evidence (however misguided) has won out over rational thinking.