Book Review: Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
Parable of the Sower is a novel written in 1993 that is set in 2024 and continues onwards to 2027. In this story, global climate change and economic crisis have led to a world where California is filled with dangers such as extreme water shortage, homelessness, and people desperate enough to do anything to live to see another day. Octavia Butler writes a story that is eerily real to current events, as climate change is causing increasingly odd weather patterns around the globe, as well as political and economic issues that are leading to increased homelessness and civilian unrest as states use tax dollars to fund the militarization of the police force. The federal government sends billions of dollars overseas to aid in a current war in Israel.
While reading this book, I could not digest the story as quickly as I may have wanted to due to the book's subject matter and the current events taking place in the United States. Lauren, the main character, suffers from hyperempathy, where she can feel other people’s pain, a condition that is rare in this world. Lauren lives in a gated religious community blocked off from the outside world. Still, with the increasing violence happening around them as more and more people get desperate, she knows it’s only a matter of time before something happens to force them out of their homes. When Lauren finally goes outside on her own to see this world, there are moments where to protect herself as well as those that she loves, she must use force to ensure survival, even if that means a stranger’s death.
This story was both gruesome and riveting, showing the strengths of human nature and the desire to live, even in a world that has nearly become inhabitable. There are moments where Lauren shows humanity and kindness to strangers, bringing them into the group in a world where kindness is void. Butler shows that community and faith go a long way in giving people a reason to continue moving forward and giving them a reason to live.
The economic and climate crises shown within this novel showcase real events happening now that are not within headline news, often being overlooked by other conflicts within the world. One example of the economic crisis lies in Mexico City, one of the biggest cities in the world, which is just a few months from running out of water. Many people face water shortages in the city and have been without proper running water for months. Without major structural changes, things like this will continue to happen worldwide, and it isn’t the citizens' fault. Like in Parable of the Sower, this crisis hits the working class the hardest. For a novel written nearly 30 decades before the year it is set in, Octavia E. Butler hits many of our current issues on the nose.
Click here for an article on the water shortage in Mexico City.
