Structure
How many alien ships arrive on Earth?
12
How old is the daughter when Louise imagines her death?
25
What nickname does Gary give the aliens?
Heptapods
What is Gary Donnelly’s profession?
Physicist
What shape are the alien ships?
Oval / shell-shaped
Who will call Louise with news of her daughter’s death?
Mountain Rescue
How many limbs do heptapods have?
Seven
What item does Colonel Weber bring to the first meeting?
A tape recorder
Where do humans enter the alien ship?
Through a gravity-shifting tunnel
What activity leads to the daughter’s death?
Rock climbing
What type of writing system do the heptapods use?
Semasiographic
Why is Colonel Weber reluctant to share information with Louise?
Military secrecy and control
What separates humans from the heptapods inside the ship?
glass wall
Why does Louise say she’ll never tell her daughter the story of her conception at the right time?
Because her daughter will die before having children
Why does Louise initially misinterpret the heptapods’ writing structure?
Their sentences merge and rotate logograms instead of separating words
What technological concern does Gary raise about human video screens?
Scan lines may be unreadable to heptapods
How does gravity behave inside the ship?
It shifts direction / is non-linear
What narrative technique connects Louise’s memories of her daughter and the alien contact?
Nonlinear time perception / future memories
Why is heptapod writing not considered glottographic?
It conveys meaning without representing spoken sounds
Why does Weber approve the use of written communication despite his concerns?
It may accelerate language learning significantly