Italo Calvino's The Aquatic Uncle

Italo Calvino's short story, "The Aquatic Uncle", is very much a commentary on the disconnect between the old and new generations, as well as on majoritarianism. The embodiment of the old generation is N'ba N'ga and of the young generation is Qfwfq. The story uses the phenomenon of biological evolution as a parallel for the way society changes from generation to generation. N'ba N'ga is an old man who refuses to evolved from an aquatic being (fish) into a terrestrial one like the rest of his family. Qfwfq is N'ba N'ga's nephew who grew up in the water but chose to leave the fins, scales, and water behind in favor of paws, smooth skin, and dry land. The two butt heads throughout the story as Qfwfq tries to convince Uncle to join the majority and Uncle stays firmly set to his stubbornness.

N'ba N'ga insists that the old way is the only true way to live and that the move to go on dry land goes against their species nature and reasoning. In contrast, Qfwfq doesn't understand how anyone would want to remain in the water upon discovering the vastness and diversity of land and views N'ba N'ga as outdated. A contemporary example of this conflict is the music taste of an eighty-year-old and a fifteen-year-old. It is very common that upon hearing the fifteen-year-old's music, the eighty-year-old will complain that it is "dumb", "explicit", or "void of meaning". Similarly, the teenager may view the senior's music as "boring", "outdated", and "lame". It is the age old conflict that the way MY generation grew up is superior to any other generation despite the jarring flaws of said generation. The older generation always thinks the way they did things was best and look down on the new generation as naive, entitled, or lazy.

The political concept of Majoritarianism comes into play as N'ba N'ga desperately tries to hold onto the past while the majority of society steps towards the future. Majoritarianism is a political ideology that says the majority of a population is given the right to make decisions affecting the whole society even if there are groups that don't agree with the majority. It is believed that majority rule is inherently democratic and provides a fairer chance for change to be made for the best interests of the population. However, there will always be people that aren't happy with the changes and feel like their opinions are being pushed to the side.

N'ba N'ga is very much a minority in a majoritarian society as he seems to be the only supporter of aquatic life left in the area. His entire family has abandoned him for life on land. His family believes land is the best option for survival and despite N'ba N'ga being a part of the family, he is left to live in isolation because the majority rule won over his old-fashioned opinions. The best part of the story is the fact that Qfwfq's fiance - someone who was born on land and never experienced life in the water - abandoned all that she knows to run off with Qfwfq's uncle to live a new life as a fish. The fact that Qfwfq's fiance was never familiar with the water is what drew her towards it; The mystery of the unfamiliar and a promise of a new beginning were exactly the same reasons N'ba N'ga's family left the water for the land. Her character shows that even the old and new generation can be in agreement and that they're not always disconnected from one another.

Carol Emshwiller's I Live with You

Emshwiller's short story, "I Live with You" focuses on an average woman's life through the eyes of a stranger inhabiting her home. The creature that inhabits the home is never really defined or properly described, so there is a lot of speculation about their identity. Although it does refer to itself as a person, I never pictured it as a human but more as a creepy, bipedal, furry animal. Actually, the first thing that came into my head was a human-like sloth slinking around the house. Whatever the unwelcome guest is, it is a real nuisance due to the antics it pulls on the tenant.

The story is very much a commentary on the way women view the world around them. As a woman, I know that many of us feel a strong paranoia in our day to day lives due to the patriarchal society we live in. Women are taught to from a young age to be weary of men, to not walk alone at night, to not wear revealing clothes. Yet, we are also taught to be polite and "ladylike" (whatever that means), attractive yet modest, approachable yet on guard. Since I was the age of thirteen, I have personally dealt with one too many strange, older men catcalling me or trying to pick me up. So, I am usually quite nervous when out and about alone, especially at night time. I constantly feel like I'm under surveillance and take measures to try and protect myself from a danger I can't even see.

The woman in "I Live With You" experiences these same fears as she notices her possessions moving around the house, food she never ate left on the counter, and even her whole wardrobe changed. It is terrifying to think that even your own home, the one place you should be able to unwind and feel safe, could become compromised. The woman becomes so freaked out over the occurrences happening in her house that she goes so far as to put a deadbolt on the inside of her room out of pure fear. It is upsetting that she feels she has to confine herself to a singular room on her own property in order to be protected.  The sad reality is that thousands of women across the globe face this same paranoia.

The creature in the house likes to pretend that it is being helpful, but I see them as a representation of the impact of the patriarchy. The woman is forced to change her clothing style, forced to invite a strange man into her house, forced to change her routine because of her fear. Women are manipulated into feeling like they need to change their lives to please men or society at the expense of their own wants and happiness. What someone wants for another persons life is not necessarily what that person wants. The woman in the story may have seemed lonely or 'boring', but that doesn't mean she wasn't happy. The creature took it upon themselves to haunt this woman's life, making her think she was crazy and being stalked, and then forced changes onto her that she never asked for. Clearly this story has a strong focus on the way that women's actions and demeanor are manipulated by the society in which they live that is predominately patriarchal.

Octavia Butler's Bloodchild

1) Uneasy is the best way that I can describe my reaction to Butler's "Bloodchild". The premise of the story reminds me of the Alien movies but the approach to which the creatures impregnate their eggs inside humans is quite less violent and a little less grotesque. When the high-inducing eggs were first introduced, my initial thought was that they were drinking from a chicken's egg - not some strange, alien creature's egg.  T'Gatoi's character is the main reason for my uneasiness because of the unfamiliarity of her character and her relationship with Gan. The thought that a creature with several limbs and a 'stinger' has constantly been interacting with and cuddling an infant into their adolescence feels very unnatural and wrong. Three minutes after birth, a baby should be in contact with the birthmother's skin - not wrapped up in the tentacle limbs of an alien.

T'Gatoi has a very strong hold over the family and basically can control what everyone does. The deal that T'Gatoi creates with Gan's mother seems very one-sided as Gan's mother basically had no choice but to say yes in order to protect her family from death. Gan definitely seems to be a victim of Stockholm Syndrome due to growing up with T'Gatoi attached to her hip. At most times, Gan sees T'Gatoi as a positive figure and Gan thinks they hold strong feelings for them, but it is clear that Gan is not entirely into the deal as they question killing themselves to avoid the impregnation. T'Gatoi uses their power over Gan to manipulate Gan into a false sense of consent by making him feel as if they have power over his body and uses his sister as ransom for not going through with the deal. This manipulation makes T'Gatoi come off as very lewd and toxic; They remind me of people today that manipulate and guilt their partners or others into giving them unwanted sexual favors. On that note, the actual impregnation ritual was very uncomfortable and gross. There was nothing truly intimate about it and felt entirely one sided. The fact that Gan consented out of guilt really just makes the entire situation feel like rape which is of course an incredibly uneasy topic and a horrific act that people unfortunately inflict on each other every day.
     

2) One of the aspects of the story I can connect with is Gan's aversion to killing and watching someone be cut open. I'm not super queasy at just the sight of blood - but I am someone who feels like they need to puke after coming across videos of really gory surgeries. I also hate bugs and refuse to ever watch any of the videos circulating out there of spiders being removed from people's ears or botflies being removed from under the skin. Having to simultaneously watch someone's stomach be sliced open, while also holding that person still, and painstakingly seeing giant grubs being removed from said stomach would cause me to lose my breakfast, lunch, and dinner all at once. Even though I am a meat eater, the thought of actually killing or watching the animals I eat be killed puts me on edge. There is no way I would be able to kill one of the creatures I eat (or don't eat either!) in real life, so I can relate to Gan on this level as well.

I also understand the feeling of wanting to protect your loved ones from harm at all costs. Although I will hopefully never be in a situation such as Gan's, I relate the the fact that they put the well-being of their sister before themselves. Although Gan was scared and hated the idea of being impregnated by T'Gatoi, they knew that they were already chosen from birth and felt it would be wrong to pawn the inevitable unto their family out of fear. Gan sacrifices their own wishes and perhaps their own life in order to protect their sister.

Gan's decision to 'consent' after T'Gatoi manipulates Gan's feelings is relatable as well. There have been times where I have felt compelled to make a decision or to partake in something that I felt really strongly against. Language can be very influential and can cause people to feel they have no choice but to submit to things that they truly don't want to do.

3) I think this story would have quite an impact as a graphic novel. The universe that Butler establishes is only briefly presented to set the story into context and could make for some very disturbing and intriguing illustrations. For starters, I would make the story longer by either including what happens after the impregnation of Gan or perhaps showing some of Gan's life from birth to the impregnation. In the form of a graphic novel, I would definitely emphasize the dominance that T'Gatoi has over the entire family by illustrating T'Gatoi to look threatening, as their entire presence in the house is inherently sinister.

Warren Ellis' Transmetropolitan, Vol. 1: Back on the Street

Warren Ellis' graphic novel, Transmetropolitan, Vol. 1: Back on the Street, follows Spider Jerusalem, a down-to-earth, inappropriate, anti-hero, as he returns to the world of journalism after a five year hiatus. The futuristic setting features contemporary issues that are just augmented to fit a sci-fi setting. The most relevant issue presented in the graphic novel is the growing presence and representation of transgenders.

In Transmetropolitan, the half human half alien population of the city represents the transgender movement in our present day society. These people are unhappy with their human identities and are transitioning into a new alien species in order to feel more comfortable in their own bodies. The use of an alien in this novel is important. For one, an alien gives off a very cyber-punk, sci-fi vibe because of its unfamiliarity and supernatural impact. Secondly, the use of an alien is a statement about how some view trans people. Many people in contemporary society cannot wrap their heads around why someone would feel uncomfortable with their assigned gender or natural body. As a result, they look at trans people through a lens of bias and confusion, seeing their community as very alien to the "norm". The minority group of transitioning aliens is not widely accepted by the Transmetropolitan society and they suffer from police brutality. Sadly, this scenario is not far from our reality as many transgender citizens are verbally/mentally abused, beaten, ignored, and killed simply for their identities.

One of the other contemporary issues that comes up in this graphic novel is the presence of corrupt politicians. Honestly, corruption in politics has existed since medieval times and will probably never cease to exist due to human nature. What Spider says to the President during their bathroom confrontation really resonates with me: "You pissed in the economy. You shat on the law and wiped your ass on the truth" (page 94). So many politicians nowadays do not care about the good of the people and make rash decisions for one specific purpose: money. They'll piss in the economy for the majority of the population if it means inflating their bank account. They'll do everything they can to act unconstitutionally without getting impeached and will deny anything they don't support even if it is fully supported by facts.

The president in Transmetropolitan reminds me of our current situation with Donald Trump and the republican party. Most of the system wants to benefit the rich and upper-class while the middle-class and poor populations are left to rot. Compassion is not a word present in the vocabulary of our current administration and neither is it present in the politics of the narrative. Spider, like many journalists, see the administration's corruption and want to report the issues in our government. In our reality, journalists are getting shut down left and right in an attempt to censor negative publicity concerning the president and the President's administration. As Spider is a journalist, he understands the dynamic between journalism and politics. The President really hates Spider but he refuses to be silenced and opposes the President at any moment. I admire Spider for his rebellious nature because he is able to bring about change by being so bold.

Transmetropolitan was a really enjoyable read and I can't wait to continue the series. I love that I can relate to the story due to the real world problems that Ellis interjects into the narrative. On a side note, the art style is also really beautiful and works well with the narrative's genre.

Samuel Delany's Babel-17

Samuel Delany's Babel-17 focused heavily on one of the most important aspects of any culture: language. Language, whether it may be vocal, visual or kinesthetic, is how a society interacts with one another. Language is how we share our feelings, thoughts, and emotions with the world around us. I’d go so far as to say that no cultural group truly lacks a language due to the wide range of ways to communicate (gestures, facial expression, posture, proxemics, haptics, etcetera).

The use of and the manipulation of language is the driving force in this novel. The protagonist, Rydra Wong, is a world-renowned poet and linguist. Rydra spends her time in the novel studying the language of Babel-17, trying to unpack its 'code' and figure out how to speak it. Babel-17 is no ordinary language and has some strange effects on the people who understand it. Rydra's vast experience with language and her plethora of knowledge concerning language makes her more aware of the nuances and effects language has on the human brain.

Babel-17 distorts Rydra’s normal perceptions of reality, interacting with her mind in a very supernatural way. Rydra’s heightened sense of the world around her is introduced fairly early in the novel when she reads the mind of the man having a conversation with her and repeats his thoughts back to him. As Rydra pursues knowledge of the mysterious Babel-17 further, her mind’s abilities expand to the point where her own physical possibilities are affected. In the galactic fight scenes, Rydra is able to make time slow down by thinking under the power of Babel-17 and uses this reality altering ability to defeat the enemy. The concept that language’s influence on the way people think and perceive is so strong that it can grant people new skills or powers is a great example of manipulation.

Babel-17’s unique properties make it quite a dangerous phenomenon. Due to its intense influence, the language acts almost like a mind controlling parasite within the individuals who understand it. Some characters in the book are completely taken control by the language and commit bad deeds unbeknownst to themselves. Rydra Wong is negatively affected as her consciousness in reality is clouded several times when she gets too caught up in using Babel-17 to communicate. It becomes difficult for Rydra to move back and forth between Babel-17 and the common language used by her crew – thus creating a language barrier within her group.

Manipulation of the mind and of the physical world are two of the main concepts explored in Babel-17. Taking these ideas and putting them into a contemporary context, it would be catastrophic if a language existed that really granted people new, seemingly impossible abilities. Anyone with the means to predict exactly what someone is going to say or think is an incredibly powerful tool that would create so many security issues. Within the wrong hands, this power could be used for blackmail, to compromise national security, to assert dominance, etcetera. The manipulative qualities of Babel-17 would surely be weaponized and used to control different populations of people – perhaps resulting in slave societies across the world.