Neuromancer

by

William Gibson

Kuang Grade Mark Eleven Term Analysis

A powerful Chinese computer virus. Often referred to simply as “Kuang.”

Kuang Grade Mark Eleven Quotes in Neuromancer

The Neuromancer quotes below are all either spoken by Kuang Grade Mark Eleven or refer to Kuang Grade Mark Eleven. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Technology and the Body Theme Icon
).
Chapter 23 Quotes

He came in steep, fueled by self-loathing. When the Kuang program met the first of the defenders, scattering the leaves of light, he felt the shark thing lose a degree of substantiality, the fabric of information loosening.

And then—old alchemy of the brain and its vast pharmacy—his hate flowed into his hands. In the instant before he drove Kuang’s sting through the base of the first tower, he attained a level of proficiency exceeding anything he’d known or imagined. Beyond ego, beyond personality, beyond awareness, he moved, Kuang moving with him, evading his attackers with an ancient dance, Hideo’s dance, grace of the mind-body interface granted him, in that second, by the clarity and singleness of his wish to die.

And one step in that dance was the lightest touch on the switch, barely enough to flip—

now

Related Characters: Henry Dorsett Case, Molly, Wintermute
Page Number: 262
Explanation and Analysis:
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Kuang Grade Mark Eleven Term Timeline in Neuromancer

The timeline below shows where the term Kuang Grade Mark Eleven appears in Neuromancer. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 10
Technology and the Body Theme Icon
...know much about it. He plugs it into the Hosaka, who informs him it’s called Kuang Grade Mark Eleven, and is a Chinese “penetration program” capable of penetrating “existing military systems... (full context)
Chapter 15
Technology and the Body Theme Icon
Identity and Personhood Theme Icon
Case flips to the matrix, watching Kuang grow. Case tells Dixie he was right—Wintermute is kept under control by a manual override,... (full context)
Chapter 16
Technology and the Body Theme Icon
...on his way back to Straylight. He’ll return at 9:00pm, cutting it close, as the Kuang is supposed to penetrate the T-A core at 8:30. (full context)
Chapter 17
Identity and Personhood Theme Icon
Self-Interest vs. Human Connection Theme Icon
Back in the matrix, Case watches Kuang expand and tells Dixie that Wintermute killed Armitage—ejecting him into space with his hatch open.... (full context)
Identity and Personhood Theme Icon
Self-Interest vs. Human Connection Theme Icon
Case flips to the matrix. Dixie tells him Kuang is working well. As they talk, the Finn/Wintermute appears in the distance, walking across the... (full context)
Chapter 21
Addiction and Dependency Theme Icon
Reality and Perception Theme Icon
...hieroglyphs across the sand, and even on the back of his hand. He realizes the Kuang is eating through the world. Linda follows Case down the beach, and suddenly she’s next... (full context)
Chapter 23
Reality and Perception Theme Icon
...room, which houses the robotic head. Case jacks into the matrix, and greets Dixie. The Kuang is ready. It’s almost like a small airplane, and Case and Dixie climb into the... (full context)
Identity and Personhood Theme Icon
Reality and Perception Theme Icon
The Kuang breaks into the beach where Neuromancer had trapped Case earlier. Case suddenly knows every detail... (full context)
Identity and Personhood Theme Icon
Self-Interest vs. Human Connection Theme Icon
Reality and Perception Theme Icon
Case jacks in. He rides Kuang above a neon city, T-A’s data. He calls out for Dixie, who doesn’t respond. Wintermute... (full context)