Prodigy Octavia Butler Character Analysis

In the beginning of the novel, Octavia Butler writes; “Prodigy is, at its essence, adaptability and persistent, positive obsession. Without persistence, what remains is an enthusiasm of the moment. Without adaptability, what remains may be channeled into destructive fanaticism. Without positive obsession, there is nothing at all.” In my own words, I believe what the author is saying is a prodigy is a young person with exceptional qualities, in particular she is referring to essence, adaptability, persistent and positive obsession. A prodigy without persistence, is someone with intense enjoyment. A prodigy without adaptability, is someone who is unwilling to accept opposing points of view. A prodigy without positive obsession, is just nothing.

The prodigy the author is referring to is Lauren, the main character. This opening passage sets the path for this novel. The novel starts with Lauren at 15 years old. Lauren is an African American teenage who seems to be smarter than most kids her age. What also makes her different from her peers is she has “hyperempathy syndrome.” This illness causes her to feel others pain and pleasure as if they were her own.

She acquired this illness because her mother was a drug addict. Unfortunately, her mom died while giving birth to her. She is being raised by her father and stepmother, Cory. Her father is a Baptist Minister. Lauren seems to disagree with her father’s beliefs. Lauren shows the one of qualities of a prodigy: essence. Essence is defined as the indispensable quality of something, especially something of abstract that determines its character. She displays essence by keeping a journal of her thoughts about God and her beliefs. Her God is a force of change that can be shaped by humans. She is beginning to find a new religion, which she calls Earthseed. As she continues to develop her new religion, she feels that nothing she says is made up, she is just discovering the truth of life. Lauren also exhibits another quality: adaptability . Adaptability is define as able to change in any situation. Lauren expresses adaptability when she realizes that their community soon enough be taken over by outsiders. The country as a whole is getting worse. She wants to make a plan that will help her community survive. Lauren also shows

persistence. Lauren shows her friend, Joanne the books she has been collecting on topics for survival. She plans to put together an emergency pack but Joanne does not believe her. She is persistent and tells Joanne she can look for other books that would help learn how to live off land and defend themselves. At the end of chapter 9, thieves come and rob Richard. The people in the community realize that the thieves will be back and may hurt people too. Lauren’s obsession with her religion makes her believe there is more they can do about this. She doesn’t just want to survive but able to shape her destiny.