Earthseed: Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents

by Octavia E. Butler

Borrowed 8/13/2020, finished Sower 8/26/20, Talents 9/8/20. Read The Parable of the Sower again in August 2022 for the ELPC Environmental Book Club meeting on 8/25/22. See also notes and queries on title page for the Sower. Octavia E. Butler, 1947-2006, I wish I had found her while she was alive, I would have liked to let her know how much I appreciate her work, but I’ve read much of what she wrote so far. God is change There’s a lot of dilemma - strategic, ethical, social, inter-personal - for which there’s no clear solution or answer. Thus dystopian, yet full of hope and likable characters. And the protagonist! Gawd she’s smart. Compassionate pragmatism. Willing to do what it takes. Always open to new learning. Parable of the Sower: Matthew 13:1–23, Mark 4:1–20, Luke 8:1-15; Gospel of Thomas 9+ Parable of the talents: Matthew 25:14–30, Luke 19:11–27 Luke 18:1-8 parable of the importunate widow and the unjust judge, p. 155 Selling birthright for bread and pottage, Gen. 25:29-34, p. 141 Coptic Gospel of Thomas: 9) Jesus said, “Now the sower went out, took a handful (of seeds), and scattered them. Some fell on the road; the birds came and gathered them up. Others fell on the rock, did not take root in the soil, and did not produce ears. And others fell on thorns; they choked the seed(s) and worms ate them. And others fell on the good soil and produced good fruit: it bore sixty per measure and a hundred and twenty per measure.” American society is collapsing due to climate change, corporate greed, and wealth disparity (sound familiar?). There are a few gated communities that serve as safe spaces where you are more protected from the poverty, cannibals, arsonists, and wild dogs. But these communities collapse, and that is what sends Lauren out into the wilds, where she creates a religion along the way and pushes for people to look to the stars for a new home. It was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year, nominated for the Nebula for Best Novel, and most recently was a New York Times Best Seller in 2020. It’s also been adapted into a graphic novel AND an opera. Parable - I get that, a story told to illuminate some facet of our lives, to teach us something we need to know or take cognizance of, but why “Sower” and “Talents”? Belief Initiates and guides action— Or it does nothing. Ch. 5 epigram p. 58. Earthseed mission statement: 2027 to ch. 14 p. 173 “My mother always said they would get better again. Good times would come back. She said they always did. My father would shake his head and not say anything.” 350 The question for today. The humor “haha” is rueful at best, painful mostly, and sometimes excruciating. Themes: Environmental and social degradation Neighborhood walls, racial animosity Anarchic society = dangerous and uncertain Hyperempathy syndrome (“sharer”) Space travel 30, 99-102, Theology: God is change, don’t sell your birthright (freedom) for bread and pottage 141, the parable of the importunate widow 155, entropy and prayer 251, Ethics of dystopia 127, 267, Ethics of ultimate concern: to what end does one shape oneself? Why is altruism any better than selfishness for a Earthseed? 296 “What then?” she demanded. “What can we do?” p. 69. 365. *The* question. Of the novels, and of our lives. Sethics of property defense and community responsibility 90 “the Destiny of Earthseed is to take root among the stars” 93 Whether to have children 103 Intra-family dynamics a matter of life and death - Dunns, Keith 106, Payne-Parrish 103, Heading north - Race Community Survivalism, preparation, paranoia, things to learn, Education - reading and writing; books, Pedagogy 79, Politics - who to vote for; whether to vote; how to organize and make decisions in a chaotic society; Trust (Travis, Natividad, hyperempathy, - “trust, but verify,” Transactional relationships Pathologies: Society breakdown Familial 42, 45-6, Law enforcement 130-32, 186, Organized religion Public utilities for profit 41 Privatization 137-139: company town and debt slavery, Scavenging: to scavenge means fighting other scavengers, left-over pyros, and maybe resilient owners. Also scavenging results from, and spreads like, fire 260-261, Horrorshow, horrific 311 Indentured servitude & debt slavery 331 Discussion ideas: https://swarthmorebookgroup.wordpress.com/2019/10/05/discussion-questions-for-olivia-butlers-the-parable-of-the-sower/ ? Background infrastructure: food supply, college, police, Many searched have $thousands on them - a universe of the well-to-do? How many of us could put several thousand dollars in our pockets on short notice. Or all smart enough to prepare? Olamina’s people weren’t. Why is altruism any better than selfishness for a Earthseed? What is Earthseed’s ethical imperative? Prescience: President Donner’s anti-science administration President Jarret’s fascist administration need for and implementation of Soul Fire Farm methods of farming environmental degradation

For ELPC environmental book club on 8/25/22: 1. We know the author wanted to set the book in future times when climate change had become an emergency and was having a considerable impact. Similarly, the social system and safety nets have frayed, so that there is chaos and collapse. What evidence did you see of these in the book? Do you see evidence of any of this happening today? [*ouch* p. 387] 2. What was your reaction to "The only lasting truth is change" "God is Change", "We shape God" "We must find the rest of what we need within ourselves, in one another, in our Destiny". "God is your teacher" Is this a religion (belief system) that would appeal to you? [ethical *imperatives* absent - why is altruism any better than selfishness?] 3. Themes: a short list. What are some others? What ones struck you? - Community - Trust - Inequality - Race and slavery - Literacy (read and write, education) - Violence - Poverty, hunger - Survival - Prepping, being ready 4. What image, or quote, or character is staying with you? Questions if a lull: 1. Sharing: was this significant to the story? How and why? How would it change the novel if Lauren did not have this condition? [The Golem’s telepathic empathy in the Wecker novels] 2. Earthseed: It is a rather rational religion. Therefore , is Lauren a prophet? [relationship between Lauren and her daughter in Talents] 3. Much of the story describes the group moving, on a journey. It seems that the readiness to move is crucial for survival. Ask for comment. [QUEST!] 4. The Earthseed community is racially and culturally mixed. Balance of suspicion and trust. Collective decision making. What shortfalls do you see in this community model? 5. Novel written in 1993, and she was looking out 30 years. How accurate? p. 387 6. Any incidents that would be unlikely? [Really lucky only one killed by the bald attackers, and that the fire didn’t kill them. (Since it caught them, it would have melted the road and killed them.)] Lauren Oya Olamina, b. 2009 Harry Balter Zahra Moss Travis Charles Douglas Gloria Natividad Douglas Dominic Douglas (Domingo), 6 mos. old Taylor Franklin Bankole, b. 1970 Allie Gilchrist Jill Gilchrist sister, mid-20’s Justin Rohr, 3 years old Emery Tanaka Solis. Tori Solis daughter, 9 years old Grayson Mora Doe Mora daughter, 7 years old

PRODIGY

Quoted in Talents, p. 578. See also p. 432 for another use of the “positive obsession.”

Lauren Oya Olamina

Also pp. 222, 385 Feedback loop and Heisenberg

Today is our birthday—my fifteenth and my father’s fifty-fifth.

Tomorrow, I’ll try to please him—him and the community and God.

“We couldn’t see so many stars when I was little,” my stepmother says to me. She speaks in Spanish, her own first language.

The neighborhood wall

I’m seven years old.

“City lights,” she says. “Lights, progress, growth, all those things we’re too hot and too poor to bother with anymore.”

Haha

an astronomy book that belonged to my father’s mother.

“The stars are free.” She shrugs. “I’d rather have the city lights back myself, the sooner the better. But we can afford the stars.”

My God has another name.

our neighborhood walls

That way they don’t have to risk going outside where things are so dangerous and crazy. It’s bad enough that some people—my father for one—have to go out to work at least once a week. None of us goes out to school any more. Adults get nervous about kids going outside.

gasoline

That’s the rule. Go out in a bunch, and go armed.

To the adults, going outside to a real church was like stepping back into the good old days when there were churches all over the place and too many lights and gasoline was for fueling cars and trucks instead of for torching things.

They never miss a chance to relive the good old days or to tell kids how great it’s going to be when the country gets back on its feet and good times come back.

Silvia Dunn

My brother Keith

Three smart sons and one dumb one, and it’s the dumb one she loves best.

the big city is a carcass covered with too many maggots.

Haha

not all the maggots are in LA. They’re here, too.

But maggots tend not to be early-m...

Haha

I saw at least three people who weren’t going to wake up again, ever. One of them was headless.

I caught myself looking around for the head. After that, I tried not to look around at all.

Maybe she had been raped so much that she was crazy. I’d heard stories of that happening.

Haha

one neighborhood wall after another;

neighborhoods so poor that their walls were made up of unmortared rocks, chunks of concrete, and trash.

Then there were the pitiful, unwalled residential areas.

inf...

squat...

I feel sorry for the little ones, but the ones my age and older make me nervous.

Robledo—

Home invasion

the street poor—

They’re desperate or crazy or both. That’s enough to make anyone dangerous.

Worse for me, they often have things wr...

They have no money to spend on water to wash with so even the unwounded have sores. They don’t get enough to eat so they’re malnourished—or they eat bad food and poison themselves.

I couldn’t help seeing—collecting—some of their general misery.

just about everyone I saw made me feel worse and worse.

my hyperempathy syndrome

Once he used red ink as fake blood to make me bleed. I was eleven then, and I still bled through the skin when I saw someone else bleeding.

I haven’t shared bleeding with anyone since I was twelve and got my first period. What a relief that was.

I didn’t fight much when I was little because it hurt me so. I felt every blow that I struck, just as though I’d hit myself.