Jo Ann Rangel <JRangel999@AOL.COM> writes:
>very interested in the development of the
>protagonist, particularly what you thought of her development into a
self-empowered
>young woman from her beginnings as a teen in the novel...
My first thoughts on this regard Lauren as leader. Q: How was she able
to convince 8 other adults to join her new religion? A: By promising
them companionship and food on their dangerous journey. Would the
religion have been strong enough to stand alone as a means to attract
followers?
Besides this aspect of Lauren's leadership, how about the fact that her
authority was never questioned, except by latecomer Mora? I am reminded
of Marge Piercy's first SF book (the title currently eludes me -- it's
about teenagers who want to recreate the country as a commune) in which
there are constant power struggles and control issues. Why do we see
none of this in _Parable_?
As _Parable_ is the first Butler I've read, I'd like to ask if all of her
stories tend to be as underdeveloped. Or, is the underdevelopment a key
point that I'm missing?
I was also really bothered by the fact that Lauren seemed to have a
pre-fab response to every newcomer's questions about Earthseed as well as
about other things. For example, after Zahra has sex with Harry for the
first time, Zahra asks Lauren if she's jealous. Lauren's immediate
response is "I'm as human as you are...But I don't think I would have
yielded to temptation out here with no prospects, no idea what's going to
happen. The thought of getting pregnant would have stopped me cold"
(183).
First of all, is this woman supposed to be superhuman? Her cool
rationality turns me off, and I have a hard time seeing an 18-year-old
(or even someone older) saying this. Personally, I would have first
said, "yes," even if I did continue with the above response.
Secondly, how many of us can instantly rattle off such an eloquent and
compact response to such an emotional question?
Anne Stuecker <avs5@juno.com> Washington, DC, USA
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu May 25 2000 - 19:05:58 PDT