Embrace diversity.
Unite –
Or be divided,
robbed,
ruled,
killed
By those who see you as prey.
Embrace diversity
Or be destroyed.
I knew I wanted to read more of Octavia Butler’s work after I finished Kindred, but I was only driven to look up this book because it was shown in one of the latest episodes of The OA.
The novel takes place in a dystopian future. It follows Lauren Olamina, a teenager with hyper-empathy syndrome who lives in one of the last civilized neighbourhoods in California, as she tries to make sense of her reality by creating a framework/vision/religion geared for humanity’s long-term survival: Earthseed.
This story hit me hard, especially the first half, through the bleak and harsh picture it paints for the future of civilization. Maybe I have been spoiled by all the positive takes I’ve been reading by Doctorow.
I recently watched the closing talk for MiXiT conf 2019. Even though it’s titled “The internet in 2030”, Andre Staltz spends most of his presentation describing the likely scenarios for our planet in the context of the climate breakdown currently underway. Much like Parable of The Sower, it starts with a number of hard realities we just have to become used to, but it ends with a vision for how we can make the best of it all, and almost echoing Earthseed mindset, it advocates for radical collaboration between individuals, communities, and states.
For a book written in 1993, Parable of the Sower feels quite timely. Well done OA.