Utopias and Dystopias Blog

 Fire is the result of two main factors in the book: man-made, and natural. Due to climate change-induced droughts and heatwaves, we see fires raging across the country. Thanks to the drug pyro, we see arsonists going ham on neighborhoods as well. Fire is a huge part of the story, but I think there is something deeper. This is quite an abstract idea, but the whole purpose behind a fever is to kill harmful pathogens in your body. By increasing the temperature, your body can heal. I interpret all of this as Earth having a fever, trying to kill the very things killing the planet. Drugs can be created naturally, and are essentially a combination of atoms, arguably a part of nature. Altogether, the drug known as pyro and climate change together are both ways for the Earth to naturally exterminate humanity. 

 Despite Keith's desire to prove himself to his father, we see him defy the wishes of the whole family time and time again. By chapter 9, he finally goes to far and is beaten up for his actions. While definitely a jarring scene, especially considering Lauren's hyper empathy, I immediately thought of the parable of the Prodigal Son. We see things going in a downward spiral for pretty much everything, but Lauren's dad's religiousness seems to go completely at odds with his treatment of Keith. In the bible, the father continues to love the prodigal son unconditionally even though he treats his father terribly. I think this scene shows the trashing of religious principles, and further proves the need for Earthseed in the story.

 In last week's reading, we learned about Lauren's hyper empathy and what caused it (Lauren's biological mom's drug abuse). Lauren's gift is probably going to be a driving factor in the story, but I can't help but notice the similarities between her gift and disbelief in her father's religion and the religious uses of hallucinogens around the world. Having out-of-this-world experiences has been a part of religious ceremonies for thousands of years, and my guess is Lauren will be no different. Even though she's rejected her father's religion, I don't think religion will be excommunicated from the rest of the book.

 One interesting part of Parable of the Sower is the heaven-like status space has in Lauren's mind. Interestingly enough, many in our current society (me included) treat space in a similar fashion. Most scientists agree that humanity must move to space in order to survive in the future. As a result, we see people like Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos investing in space travel. While under the guise of exploration, there has always been a hint of necessity in all efforts to go to space. Lauren seems to have a similar perspective. We are thrown right into her dream out of control flying (sort of like zero-g?) to her waking up to a starry sky. Space is key from the beginning, and I'm excited to see where it leads us as we read more.