A recurring conceit in science fiction, particularly
reinforced by those writers who appeared regularly
in Astounding Magazine (later Analog) under John
W. CAMPBELL’s editorship, is that humans are in
some fashion superior to every other intelligence
in the universe. We might not be as physically
powerful as some, as technologically advanced as
others, or as organized and efficient; but through
hard work, wiliness, and moral superiority, humans
will always carry the day. Eric Frank RUSSELL usually accepted that assumption without qualification, and wrote stories in which a single human
defeats an entire alien race, most notably Next
of Kin (1959), wherein a lone prisoner in an
interstellar war amusingly, though rather implausibly, undermines the confidence of an entire
alien race.
Wasp makes use of a very similar premise, but
with a more serious plot and a more plausible set of
methods. James Mowry has been physically altered
so that he can pass for one of the humanoid aliens
with whom Earth is at war. He is conveyed to one
of the enemy worlds—an average planet rather
than their capital or a major military installation—
along with a small amount of equipment with
which he is to undertake a one-man assault on the
morale and operations of the enemy. Mowry invents a nonexistent underground resistance group
and begins distributing their literature and warnings as well as committing acts of petty sabotage.
Like a wasp buzzing around a bear, he can inflict
very little real damage, but his presence is distracting, and the local authorities eventually divert a
substantial amount of resources as they attempt to
track down the supposed rebels. The associated repression causes unrest among the local inhabitants,
which reduces their efficiency even further. Mowry
is a heroic figure; but unlike most such characters
from the 1950s, his victories are incremental
rather than spectacular. Readers can more easily
identify with someone whose exploits seem entirely
possible than with those whose achievements are
on a much grander scale.