As I began reading “Parable of the Sower” I was blown away by the foreshadowing Octavia Butler did in her depiction of Los Angeles and Southern California. The novel was written a year before the LA riots broke out yet it depicts a landscape that could have truly happened had the pressure cooker known as LA had continued to boil. The descriptions of a failing economy companied by rampant drug use is precisely what was occurring at the time that the novel was written. The LA riots, although violent and tragic, were a way for African Americans to relieve the stress they had been living with for so long and also a means to cry for help from the rest of the world. However, had the riots not happened, that tension could have very well continued to build while new and more innovative drugs were created thus leading to a world very similar to Butlers.

thoughts on "Nova"

                A nova is a destructive explosion of an entire sun which in turn, while being extremely destructive, results in the creation of new elements or space. On page 24 Captain Lorq Von Ray says, “Where we’re going all law has broken down.” To which Katin asks, “Which law do you mean? Man’s or the natural laws of physics, psychic, and chemistry?” and Captain Lorq Von Ray answers with, “All of them.”  I believe the title, “Nova” symbolizes the destruction that the race for the nova creates while Captain Lorq Von Ray’s intent is in order to create something new. He wants to change the current order of things a make it better, or new. The word nova has a Latin origin in novum which happens to mean “something new”.

                Captain Von Ray wants to destroy the reign of Prince Red and his family along with the era of the earth-centered Draco’s control. Through his destruction he seeks to bring about a new era in which Pleiades is in economic control and new ideas can become reality. In this case, the nova serves as an source for new opportunities, hopefully better ones.

                Also in the process of becoming something new are the “Outer Colonies”. These, I think, are very much a metaphor for the “New World” of our own colonial era. While the Outer Colonies do already have inhabitants there is a desire to make them better and benefit from the resources they have to offer. The Outer Colonies are a chance to create a better more fruitful world.

                Another definition for nova that we discussed in class was that of its relation to the word “novel”. Novel can mean a new and interesting idea such as the idea to use illyriom as a fuel because of its power. However, one of the characters, Katin, has an intention of writing an actual novel. At the time that the story takes place the novel form is pretty much obsolete yet Katin wants very much to write one. Unfortunately he has no idea what the subject of his novel should be despite hundreds of thousands of words he has dictated into his recorder about what his novel should do and achieve.

                The title, “Nova” is more than a title. It represents the influx of new ideas and new changes encircling the world of the characters. The actual act of a nova, with its destructive explosion that turns into something new, represents the destruction that must occur in the novel in order for Captain Von Ray to achieve the goals he wants to achieve so badly.

I could not help but notice the similarities between the Imperio in Imporium and the Black Internationale.  The Black Internationale is comprised of “intellectuals, scientists, and engineers.”(pg.15) while the Imperio was formed by the elitist of the elite black men of the United States. While it is ideal to have the greatest minds in an organization, I feel like those who may not be the most educated could have the most heart which is what both organizations seem to lack.

                In the Imperio, Belton served to represent the lower classes of black men. Although he was educated and extraordinarily well spoken and smart, he also came from a very low class citizen point of view. Because of this he was able to see a bigger picture of how to truly deal with their situation. He knew that you had to battle through the proper steps in order to make a difference. The Imperio, unfortunately wanted to fight brutally. Within the Imperio, however, they did show ruthlessness towards those considered traitors. This is why, although Belton was well loved and received, he was also executed. He chose not to go along with them and thus was executed.

                The Black Nationale shows the same ruthlessness. Our first introduction to them as a whole involves three men being brutally and abruptly executed without even a chance to speak their piece. The Black Nationale chooses to lead with violence much like the Imperio. Those who choose to violate the ideals have nothing to look forward to but death.

                Another similarity is the goal to wipe out white supremacy all together. Instead of choosing to live together in a world of compromise, both groups want to assert their superiority over the white race but they do not want to put the work in required to make a real difference. Both organizations are ready to go into battle and blindside the white society in power.

                Both groups have much in common. They have a tendency towards violence with a no mercy attitude towards those they feel are not with them. They botha also have an agenda towards the white society in power. They both want to overthrow them in an attempt to show their own superiority. They should be focusing on bettering their race instead of a forceful overthrow. With all the attention focused on their elite the both forget the majority, of who are not all the best educated. If they spent more time working to improve the status of everyone they may stand a better chance of overcoming their obstacles.

One of the first legal efforts to classify race came in a Virginia law in 1787 which claimed that any person having one-fourth black blood, or having any grandparent who was black, was themselves black. It eventually came to be that any person known to have any trace of black blood no matter how small was defined as black. Mulattoes in the 19^th century faced many struggles as they were neither black nor white. Those with light enough features struggled to blend in with the white people. We have seen this in both novels we have read so far this quarter.

Bernard in Imperium in Imperio was able to be successful despite his black blood. He also did not have to hide his black side but rather embraced it. He found success in school and later had a very rewarding career. As the novel progressed he came to shun his Anglo Saxon heritage in favor of his African American roots.

                In Of One Blood Reuel Briggs is described of having, “an abundance of black hair, straight and closely cut, thick and smooth; the nose was the aristocratic feature, although nearly spoiled by broad nostrils… his skin was white, but of a tint suggesting olive.”(pg.3)This description is the first glimpse we get that Briggs may have black ancestry. Like Bernard, Briggs is receiving an excellent education from a highly esteemed Northern University but that is where their similarities end. While Bernard embraces his black roots and comes to shun his white roots, Briggs spends much of the novel not acknowledging his black heritage. His features are so light hat he is able to walk among the wealthy and talented white elite and to do so as an equal. Only Livingstone seems to know the truth of Briggs’ heritage.

                What really struck me about Briggs’ situation is that when he fell in love with Dianthe, race became a problem. While she also was able to blend in with the whites without raising suspicion about her black roots, it was brought to Briggs’ attention that should he marry her and her heritage become known, his own career and reputation would be ruined. I found it amazing that a black man had been able to embed himself into society so well that his world could be turned upside down by being involved with a black person. It is really incredible. In class we talked about how much the mulatto’s struggles with making it in society and I enjoyed reading about a man who had gained true respect from his white counterparts.

                Of One Blood takes an interesting approach to the situation of the mulattoes during this time.

1.       What is the significance of the power that the spiritual has for reminding Dianthe of her past? Why is it that particular spiritual over all of the music she hears day in and day out?

2.       When the leopard attacks Briggs, Jim the black man is fast asleep while “Adonis” shows up just in time rifle in hand to save Briggs. After reading Belton’s speech regarding  Africans sleeping in the jungles while white men were progressing and coming up with new technologies, how do you interpret this scene and its relevance to Briggs’ dynamics amongst those around him?

“And in the same way that SF focuses on the impact of information technologies on the psychology of a society, black literature moves the silence and intellectual marginalization of blacks to the foreground. Both represent an attempt to view everything through a single lens, so that we can see the specter haunting society that society doesn’t want to acknowledge.” Greg Tate

      I found this passage interesting. It is as though black literature is trying to smack us in the face with issues we are trying to ignore. So often, we as a society try to convince ourselves that things in the past such as slavery are exactly that; in the past. What we choose not to acknowledge that slavery and the following oppression were wrong and DO have repercussions even to this day. It had previously never really occurred to me the lack of real history most black people in our country hold. I always knew that when slaves were brought over that they were not allowed to speak their own languages and were often separated from their families and even their own people but I guess I never really sat and thought about what that truly meant. I never realized that a painful effect of that was the loss of family and cultural history. My grandmother is an immigrant but she and all of her family before her grew up in Scotland and I have such a rich knowledge of my own families past and that in turn has shaped who I am and who I would like to be.

      The intellectual marginalization of blacks is something I never really analyzed either. We all know the stereotypes we see every day but I guess, since a lot if these come from black musical artists themselves we forget that they are still stereotypes and they lower the public perception of the intelligence of blacks.

      Darryl Smith’s “The Pretended” did exactly as Greg Tate was getting at by smacking me in the face with certain truths. The conversation between Diva Eve and Mnemosyne on the train was very revealing. In the beginning of the story I thought it was going to be another case of robots, or aliens serving as “the other”. I thought it was going to be another commentary on how they are ostracized and how those around them don’t even realize it. I realized that Mnemosyne and her mother were robots whole those around them were “people” and that they worked for the “people”. The conversation on the train, however revealed that this story was going to be so much more.

      For so long whites did treat blacks as if they weren’t real people, I believe there was a point in American history where they became 1/3 of a person so I suppose that was progress….I found it so interesting that Smith created a word where whites, after feeling so guilty about treating blacks as “not people” for so long that they built actual “not people” (robots) and then modeled them to be black so as to reassure themselves that black people were “not people”. I have to admit that that blew my mind.

      When the conversation began I was confused as to why the robots, in a futuristic society which to me insinuates a more intelligent society, would speak English so poorly. When it became known that the robots were modeled after black people it made so much more sense. It was hear that the intellectual marginalization that Tate was speaking of was moved to the foreground. Our stereotypes have become so strong that in the world Smith has imagined, blacks are still created to appear unintelligent.

Discussion questions:

1. This story was written in 2000, is there anything about this time period that you believe would inspire Smith to write such a scathing review on the intents of white society and how they may one day try to alive their guilt?

2. The robots were made to resemble black people and speak in an older type of dialect, especially since the story was written in 2000. If they were built to reinforce the idea of blacks being “not people” what effect does the dialect used by them have on making them seem not as real. Does it make them more endearing or do they appear so uneducated that they couldn’t be worthy of real respect?

How does Harry Bittering react to being stranded on Mars and to the gradual assimilation of his friends and family? Discuss how his reaction relates to the concept of "the other." What might his reaction suggest about the social climate of the United States in 1949 (postwar culture)?

Harry hated being stranded in the beginning. He had relied on the fact that he could always buy a ticket home and when the rockets were bombed he was terrified. He was determined to hold on to what he had always known and was even more determined to build himself a rocket home. He sees his famly and friends gradually turning into martians and he is afraid. He resists it as much as he can until the "martian-ness" takes over him. His initial reaction is very reminiscent of the American climate in 1949. People were terrified of communists and thought that they would gradually take over the world. Anyone supposedly communist was to be feared. Bittering was afraid of his counterparts when they began to change. When Bittering saw his friends and family developing new characteristics he became afraid they would change completely. Similarily Americans in this time thought that they would "catch" communism and it would spread rapidly. The spread of martian-ness is a take on what American's believed would happen to them.

I have never blogged before but I had to set one up for an english class. Hopefully I will love it and keep going but for now it will pretty much be about my reflections and ideas for my Afrofuturisms class. I don't know a thing about science fiction so thi should be interesting......here goes!