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A review by rlgreen91
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Where do I begin? Days after finishing, weeks after the book club discussion - there's just so much in this book to tackle. I mean, I don't really engage in literary criticism, but shouldn't more people be writing essays about this novel? Shouldn't we, as the public, talk about this book more beyond those interested in science fiction or Black literature or both? Why the f*ck is this book not considered a classic in the way that Infinite Jest is? You could argue that well, Parable of the Sower only came out in 1996 but Infinite Jest came out 3 years earlier, so...
Anyways, if I had to pick one topic about the book that is top of mind it would be Lauren's hyperempathy. I have a lot of thoughts of Lauren's disability, as evident by the many notes and marked pages in my copy. I can say that, when I think of the books I've read over my life, this is hands down the best portrayal I have encountered of what it is like to live with a mental illness. Granted, I could certainly read more literature by people with disabilities and mental illnesses, but I would be interested to see how their characters compare to Lauren. There's just so much that Butler hints at or suggests about how disabilities and mental illness affects people throughout the book.
One thing that comes to mind is how Lauren's mental illness wasn't just mental. Yes, her hyperempathy was a delusional disorder, and occurred within her mind, but it had real physical effects on her. She could, at certain times in life, start bleeding if she saw other people bleeding. If she sees someone on the ground due to pain, all of a sudden she's on the ground, unable to move as well. Even though the cause of her pain is entirely mental, she's still physically affected during any episodes. Her mental illness affected her physical health, which is something that I don't know that we've really grasped as a whole yet, or maybe we had and forgot at some point.
Another thing that comes to mind is how societal norms and expectations of race, gender, age, etc. can affect a person's experiences with disabilities and others' perceptions of people with disabilities. There's a moment in the novel where Lauren realizes that having hyperempathy, and its resulting reaction to pain, is probably a lot more accepted for women than it is for men. It's an aha moment that took her a bit to have, and you can see how it colors her interactions with Mora.
There's just so much in this book, not just about living with disabilities and mental illnesses, but also about community building, understanding when and how to trust and be vulnerable with others, what it means to really be secure in life, climate change, and so so much more. This is definitely a book I plan to reread at some point, fully expecting to come away amazed with a different set of new perspectives. Let's just hope that 2024 in real life isn't as bleak as the one in the novel.
Anyways, if I had to pick one topic about the book that is top of mind it would be Lauren's hyperempathy. I have a lot of thoughts of Lauren's disability, as evident by the many notes and marked pages in my copy. I can say that, when I think of the books I've read over my life, this is hands down the best portrayal I have encountered of what it is like to live with a mental illness. Granted, I could certainly read more literature by people with disabilities and mental illnesses, but I would be interested to see how their characters compare to Lauren. There's just so much that Butler hints at or suggests about how disabilities and mental illness affects people throughout the book.
One thing that comes to mind is how Lauren's mental illness wasn't just mental. Yes, her hyperempathy was a delusional disorder, and occurred within her mind, but it had real physical effects on her. She could, at certain times in life, start bleeding if she saw other people bleeding. If she sees someone on the ground due to pain, all of a sudden she's on the ground, unable to move as well. Even though the cause of her pain is entirely mental, she's still physically affected during any episodes. Her mental illness affected her physical health, which is something that I don't know that we've really grasped as a whole yet, or maybe we had and forgot at some point.
Another thing that comes to mind is how societal norms and expectations of race, gender, age, etc. can affect a person's experiences with disabilities and others' perceptions of people with disabilities. There's a moment in the novel where Lauren realizes that having hyperempathy, and its resulting reaction to pain, is probably a lot more accepted for women than it is for men. It's an aha moment that took her a bit to have, and you can see how it colors her interactions with Mora.
There's just so much in this book, not just about living with disabilities and mental illnesses, but also about community building, understanding when and how to trust and be vulnerable with others, what it means to really be secure in life, climate change, and so so much more. This is definitely a book I plan to reread at some point, fully expecting to come away amazed with a different set of new perspectives. Let's just hope that 2024 in real life isn't as bleak as the one in the novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Physical abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Mental illness, Rape, and Death of parent