Part I — Sowing Survival: Lauren and Trauma Introduction Octavia Butler’s (1993) novel Parable of the Sower unapologetically depicts a dystopia filled with theft, murder, and rape. Lauren—the narrator and protagonist—not only witnesses these crimes but suffers the victims’ pain as a hyper-empath. Traumatised by her immersive onlook, Lauren develops coping mechanisms that embrace leadership over vulnerability and apathy against hyperempathy. The former—reclaiming a sense of autonomy—gives birth to Earthseed, a religion of Lauren’s creation which she initially uses to become an authority of moral standing—attempting to stop the suffering of others. The latter—becoming apathetic to counter physical hyperempathy, although detrimental to the former—is …show more content…
Earthseed as a Coping Mechanism Lauren embraces Earthseed as a way to mitigate the loss of autonomy that comes with victimisation. For example, she writes that Earthseed “quiets the mind” and “strengthens purpose” (Butler 214). These effects show that Lauren relies on Earthseed for mental sustenance. The particular emphasis on autonomy is clarified when Lauren writes in the Earthseed book that “all struggles are essentially power struggles” (Butler 94). This definitive statement shows that Lauren’s struggles—such as her struggle to strengthen Earthseed—are to gain authority above all else. Therefore, the written doctrines of Earthseed have negligible significance—they are merely for Lauren’s satisfaction. Furthermore, these findings indicate that Lauren is not a prophet, nor a visionary; but a young girl who desperately needs nurturing. She leads people along a course that is purely her own—a mistake consequent of her youth; consequent of a society pressing youth beyond its limits. Despite the failings of her caretakers, Lauren still displays moral intent with her …show more content…
Apathy as a Coping Mechanism Correspondingly, Lauren starts practising apathy to counter the traumatising effects of her hyperempathy. For instance, amid her father’s disappearance—and implied death—she addresses her community, thanks them for their efforts in searching for him, and then preaches “a sermon about perseverance”. This response, limited in vehemence, is contrary to what one might expect from anyone—let alone a teenage girl who is grieving for their father. This demonstrates that Lauren practises dissociation from her emotions. Although this yielding to mental lassitude is harmful, Lauren has a valid reason to do this: Mitigating the weakening effects of her hyperempathy. Early in the book, Lauren states that she “can do okay” if she keeps her condition secret, suggesting that there is a level of danger involved in the vulnerability of hyperempathy (Butler 12). This makes sense—a dystopia like Parable of the Sower’s (Butler, 1993) seldom accommodates any disability; usually exploiting it as a
Diane Urban, for instance, was one of the many people who were trapped inside this horror. She “was comforting a woman propped against a wall, her legs virtually amputated” (96). Flynn and Dwyer appeal to the reader’s ethical conscience and emotions by providing a story of a victim who went through many tragedies. Causing readers to feel empathy for the victims. In addition, you began to put yourself in their shoes and wonder what you would do.
This book explores an avenue of advocacy against social injustices. The most observable plight Joe suffers is figuring out how to deal with the injustice acted against his mother, which has caused strife within his entire family and within himself. The book opens with, “small trees had attacked my parents' house at the foundation” (Erdrich 4) The initial conflict in this story is that Joe’s mother, Geraldine, is raped.
Compassion has became something rare in our society, and something that a lot of people lack. The author, Barbara Lazear Ascher, explains to us that compassion is not a character trait, but rather something that we learn along the way with the help of real life situations we encounter, such as the ones she encountered herself. Ascher persuades her audience that compassion is not just something you are born with by using anecdotes, rhetorical questions, and allusions.
At the beginning of the story we are introduced to George and Hazel who are an ordinary couple that consequently suffer from handicaps. They are recalling the time when their son, Harrison Bergeron, was taken from his home by the handicapper general. It was an unhappy thought “but George and Hazel couldn't think about it very hard” (Vonnegut 1) due to the mental radio that separated the two from regular functioning emotions. Although Hazel was not affected by the handicap itself, it became a societal norm to act almost robot-like. This tendency provoked Hazel to the point where “there were tears on [her] cheeks, but she'd forgotten…what they were about” (1). The loss of emotion has taken the citizens’ entitlement to experience not only happiness and love but also sadness and grief. These are all traits that people need in order to operate like normal human beings. When George and Hazel witnessed the traumatic murder of their son on television, George automatically forgets due to his mental radio. Hazel, however, reacts to the frightening scene in front of her but forgets the occurrence just as fast. When asked by George what she was crying about the only thing she can recall is that the incident was “something real sad on television” (6). In consequence of the failure to express emotion, the difficulty of evolving society
The author, William Faulkner, has a collection of books, short stories, and poems under his name. Through his vast collection of works, Faulkner attempts to discuss and bring awareness to numerous aspects of life. More often than not, his works were created to reflect aspects of life found within the south. Family dynamics, race, gender, social class, war, incest, racism, suicide, necrophilia, and mental illness are just some of the aspects that Faulkner explored. In “A Rose for Emily” the aspects of necrophilia and mental illness along with the societal biases that were observed in a small-town setting are seen to be a part of this captivating story. These aspects ultimately intertwine with the idea of insanity that characterizes “A Rose for Emily.
Allison has had a bitter past full of moments which have scarred her personality. She uses these and writes about the world that few are willing to admit exists. Many find refuge behind their gregarious nature and take comfort in religion or other bodies. However, that does not change the facts of what the world is and how it got there. Allison exposes her audience to these facts, and in the process, she shares her own view.
In Octavia Butler’s Parable of the Sower, Lauren describes the world as bleak and beyond repair. Public and government authorities are corrupt, the streets are filled with the poor, and the environment has become so dismal that people fight over water. Due to the environmental disasters and the lack of rain, water has become sacred and only wealthy individuals can afford access. Lauren lives with her religious Christian father, but she rejects his religion because she believes that people must adapt and depend on themselves to live in a different world: space. A connection that I made with our present society is the urgency and the need for the human race to move to another planet. In the novel, Lauren says, “‘Space could be our future,’ I
Being left out is never a pleasant experience for anyone, especially when society is shaped to exclude people who do not fit the standards of being “normal.” A sense of belonging is a fundamental human need. Human contract is essential for surviving; therefore, being left out hurts on a physical and psychological level, often times resulting in severe depression and anxiety. One part in the book that stood out to me was when the taxi driver refused to take her to her hotel by saying “this is not an ambulance.” These kinds of situations are hurtful and result in a sense of loneliness; however, Simi does a good job by moving forward. She becomes accepting of her disability by forcing herself to realize that she does have an important role in the world regardless of her impairment. As a society we need to correct our negative views on disability so that we can progress and focus our behavior on improving society’s overall atmosphere to avoid having unfavorable interactions between
What defines an individual’s racial characteristics? Does an individual have the right to discriminate against those that are “different” in a specific way? In Octavia Butler’s works, which are mostly based on themes that correlate to one another, she influences the genre and fiction in ways that bring light to the problems of societies history. Through Kindred and the Parable of the Sower, Octavia Butler examines themes of community, racial identification, and racial oppression through the perspective of a black feminist. In each novel, values and historical perspective show the hardships that individuals unique to an alien world have to face. Through the use of fictional works, Butler is able to delve into historical themes and human conditions, and with majority of works under the category of science fiction, Butler is able to explore these themes through a variety of settings. This essay will discuss two of Butler’s popular works, Kindred and the Parable of Sower, and will interpret the themes of women, race, independence, and power throughout the two novels.
Throughout history, society has been used as a means of inspiration for writers of all genres. More often then not, writers do not shine a light on the positive aspects of society, they chose to focus on the decline of the modern world. For a writer to truly capture this societal decline, they must be brave enough to accept it. For one writer in particular, her passion and style are what fuel her to create masterpieces of literature centered on that very topic. With her ability to focus on modern American society with topics such as rape, child abuse and murder, Joyce Carol Oates’s novels have been able to capture the sometimes cruel reality of American life in an unorthodox way.
When one faces a traumatic experience, his or true nature often reveals itself. Trauma forces its sufferers to cope. How one copes is directly linked to his or her personality. Some will push any painful feelings away, while others will hold onto pleasant memories. Both of these coping mechanisms can be observed in Katherine Anne Porter’s “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” and William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily.” In “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” and “A Rose for Emily,” the two protagonists’ prominent characteristics distinctly affect the way they cope with trauma and influence the short stories’ outcomes.To begin, Granny Weatherall is a prideful control freak. In contrast, Miss Emily is delusional and stubborn.
She continues in this sequel to talk about the abuse she faced and the dysfunction that surrounded her life as a child and as a teen, and the ‘empty space’ in which she lived in as a result. She talks about the multiple personalities she was exhibiting, the rebellious “Willie” and the kind “Carol”; as well as hearing noises and her sensory problems. In this book, the author puts more emphasis on the “consciousness” and “awareness” and how important that was for her therapeutic process. She could not just be on “auto-pilot” and act normal; the road to recovery was filled with self-awareness and the need to process all the pieces of the puzzle—often with the guidance and assistance of her therapist. She had a need to analyze the abstract concept of emotions as well as feelings and thoughts. Connecting with others who go through what she did was also integral to her
The characters in Alice Sebold’s The Lovely Bones are faced with the difficult task of overcoming the loss of Susie, their daughter and sister. Jack, Abigail, Buckley, and Lindsey each deal with the loss differently. However, it is Susie who has the most difficulty accepting the loss of her own life. Several psychologists separate the grieving process into two main categories: intuitive and instrumental grievers. Intuitive grievers communicate their emotional distress and “experience, express, and adapt to grief on a very affective level” (Doka, par. 27). Instrumental grievers focus their attention towards an activity, whether it is into work or into a hobby, usually relating to the loss (Doka par. 28). Although each character deals with their grief differently, there is one common denominator: the reaction of one affects all.
In the short story “A Rose for Emily” written by William Faulkner, Emily, the protagonist, is shown as someone who’s life is falling apart and brought down by society. Emily in this story could be described as a victim to society and her father. Emily Grierson’s confinement, loss of her father and Homer, and constant criticism caused her, her insanity.
The feeling of walking down a seemingly endless tunnel of shadows is overwhelming for a vast amount of people. The tunnel is as dark as the blackest part of night, and those individuals cannot see a shining light that represents a hopeful end to their troubles. Some experience an inability to recover from hardship or stress in their lives, while others may have a lack of self-confidence or sense of purpose. These are the people who have the hardest time seeing that light at the end of the tunnel and might do just about anything to find a way out. Nearly every individual going through a hormonal change can understand the raging war that is taking place between the characters and their inner demons in Ellen Hopkins’s novel, Impulse.