Dr. Louise Banks Language is the foundation of civilization. It is the glue that holds a people together. It is the first weapon drawn in a conflict.
Played by Amy Adams 
Arrival (2016) · 17 quotes
Arrival (2016) · 17 quotes
Most-quoted character in Arrival (2016): in 14 of its 17 quotes
Most scenes with: Ian Donnelly (5), Col. Weber (5)
I used to think this was the beginning of your story. Memory is a strange thing. It does not work like I thought it did. We are so bound by time. By its order...But now I'm not so sure I believe in beginnings and endings. There are days that define your story beyond your life. Like the day they arrived.
More lines from Dr. Louise Banks
2 quotes Dr. Louise Banks Dr. Louise Banks So, Hannah...This is where your story begins. The day they departed...Despite knowing the journey...and where it leads...I embrace it. And I welcome every moment of it.
Scenes with Dr. Louise Banks
11 scenes
[after playing a recording]
How would you approach translating this? You hear any words? Phrases?
Dr. Louise Banks I do not... I do not know.
So what can you tell?
Dr. Louise Banks I can tell you that it is impossible to translate an audio file. I would need to be there to interact with them.
You did not need that for Farsi translation.
Dr. Louise Banks I did not need because I already knew the language, but this is...
I know what you're doing.
Dr. Louise Banks Tell me what I'm doing.
I'll not take you to Montana. It's all I can do to keep it turning into a tourist site for everybody who has a clearance.
Dr. Louise Banks I'm just telling you what it would take to do this job.
It is not a negotiation. If I leave here... your chance is gone. Good day.
Dr. Louise Banks Colonel...You mentioned Berkeley. Are you going to ask Danvers next?
Maybe.
Dr. Louise Banks Before you commit to him...ask him the Sanskrit word for "war" and its translation.
Good Morning.
Dr. Louise Banks Colonel?
Gravisti.
Dr. Louise Banks That's the word, but what did he say it means?
He said it means an argument. What does it really mean?
Dr. Louise Banks A desire for more cows.
Pack your bags.
Agent Halpern We have to consider the idea that our visitors are prodding us to fight among ourselves until only one faction prevails.
Dr. Louise Banks There's no evidence of that.
Agent Halpern Sure there is. Just grab a history book. The British with India, the German with Rwanda...
I don't want to take away from your success, but Dr. Banks, is it really the right approach? Try to teach them how to speak and read? That's gonna take long.
Dr. Louise Banks You're wrong! Its faster.
Everything you do here, I have to explain to a room full of men, whose first and last question is how can this be used against us. So you'll have to give me more than that!
Dr. Louise Banks Kangaroo.
What is that?
Dr. Louise Banks In 1770, Captain James Cook's ship ran aground off the coast of Australia and led a party, where they found the aboriginal people. One of the sailors pointed to the animals that hop around and put their babies in their pouch, And he asked what they were. The Aborigines said "kangaroo".
And your point is?
Dr. Louise Banks It wasn't until later that they learned that "kangaroo" means "I don't understand". So...I need this so that we don't misinterpret things in there, otherwise it is going to take 10 times as long.
I can sell that for now. But I need you to submit your vocabulary of words before the next session. Remember what happened to the Aborigines. A more advanced race, nearly wiped them out.
Dr. Louise Banks Thanks. It's not true, but it proves my point.
You have a vocabulary list for me?
Dr. Louise Banks I do.
You're gonna teach them, your name, and Ian's?
Dr. Louise Banks Yes, so that we can learn their names, if they have names, and then introduce pronouns later.
These are all grade-school words. Eat. Walk. Help me understand.
Dr. Louise Banks [Dr. Banks writes "What is your purpose on Earth?" on the whiteboard]
Okay, this is where you want to get to, right?
That is the question.
Dr. Louise Banks Okay. So, first, we need to make sure that they understand what a question is. The nature of a request for information, along with a response. Then, we need to clarify the difference between a specific "you"...and a collective "you", because we don't want to know why 'Joe Alien' is here, we want to know why they all landed. And purpose requires an understanding of intent. We need to find out: do they make conscious choices, or is their motivation so instinctive that they don't understand a "why" question at all. And biggest of all, we need to have enough vocabulary with them, that we understand their answer.
I get it. Stick to your list. Just...Don't add anything to it.
You know, I was just thinking about you. You approach language like a mathematician. You know that right?
Dr. Louise Banks I will take that as a compliment.
But it is. And... I watched you steer us around these communication traps that I did not even know existed. What...? I guess this is why I'm still single.
Dr. Louise Banks Trust me, you can understand communication and still end up single.
How are you feeling?
Dr. Louise Banks I need some sleep, but...I am fine.
Yeah?
Dr. Louise Banks I've been doing a bit of reading about this idea that...What if you immerse yourself into a foreign language...You can actually rewire your brain.
It is a hypothesis.
Dr. Louise Banks It is a theory that...It is the theory that...The language you speak determines how you think. Yes, it affects how you see everything...
I'm curious. Are you dreaming in their language?
Dr. Louise Banks I've had some dreams. I don't think that makes me unfit to do this job.
Dr. Louise Banks God... are they...? They are using a game to communicate with the Heptopods?
Maybe... why?
Dr. Louise Banks Let's say I taught them chess instead of English. Every conversation would be a game, every idea expressed through opposition. Victory... defeat. You see the problem? If all I ever gave you was a hammer...
Everything's a nail. We need to ask the big question. Ready or not.
Dr. Louise Banks If you could see your whole life from start to finish, would you change things?
Maybe I would say what I feel more often than I... I don't know. [Looks up at the sky] You know I've had my head tilted up to the stars for as long as I can remember. You know what surprised me the most? It wasn't meeting them. It was meeting you.
Dr. Louise Banks They have names. But what're we going to call them?
I'm thinking "Abbott & Costello".
Dr. Louise Banks [face-to-face with 2nd Heptapod]
Costello. Where's Abbott?
2nd Heptapod
[writes]
Abbott is death process.
Dr. Louise Banks I'm sorry.
