The argument we had in class about this story was, was Octavia Butler referring to slavery in this story. I do believe that in this story she was referring to slavery in an indirect way. Whether she meant to or not there are many clues that say she was hinting at slavery.
The first clue was the fact that humans were kept in sort of like a cage by the Tlics on this other planet or world just as slaves were many years ago. Also the forced "impregnation" if you will of humans by the aliens or Tlics. This also happened to slaves by there masters on many occasions. These were the two main reasons that I noticed to make me feel that she was referring to slavery in this story.
Anthony DiChristopher
post 11
It seems as though the class consensus in regard to the issue is that there are too many parts of the story that draw comparison to slavery for it not to be, in some way, an exploration of this issue. Essentially, Butler seems to be imagining what slavery on an alien planet in the future might look like.
ReplyDelete