Abstract
Despite extensive critical discourse on themes of power, conflict, and language in Octavia Butler’s work, the impact of linguistic impoliteness on these themes has not been previously explored. This paper analyzes Butler’s use of linguistic (im)politeness in her Xenogenesis trilogy finding that Butler undermines polite forms of communication thereby foregrounding power asymmetry between characters. Although dystopic literature creates an expectation of impoliteness and conflict, Butler relies on a normative framework of ordinary conversational politeness to heighten impoliteness effects so that they remain salient to readers. The spokesperson for this privileged view of confrontational verbal interaction is her main female character, Lilith Iyapo, whose focalized interactions allow Butler to connect impoliteness with key themes of the trilogy—truth telling and an authentic human identity.
Highlights
The question this research seeks to address is how Octavia Butler exploits conversational expectations of polite and impolite verbal interactions in her Xenogenesis trilogy to present readers with a positive value of the discomfort of impoliteness— deepening the moral ambiguity of the narrative’s struggle between an eutopic and dystopic vision.Studies of the critical dystopia have shown that “the conflict of the text turns on the control of language” (Moylan and Baccolini, 2003, p. 5).1 As Tom Moylan and Raffaella Baccolini argue, the underlying power structure of the dystopic world operates through “social, and anti-social...language” primed to coerce consent from the colonized subjects of the dystopia” (2005, p. 5)
Readers identify with Nikanj because it does seem to listen to Lilith and to treat her with more respect than other Oankali do; their relationship is distanced from the overarching power asymmetry of the trilogy as Nikanj is shown to have opinions that differ from the Oankali “consensus.” An examination of Lilith’s and Nikanj’s conversations offers the best illustration of how Butler uses moral conflict to affect readers’ identification with her themes
This paper has argued that Lilith’s impolite approach is valued by Butler’s intent for Xenogenesis because it challenges reader identification and heightens moral ambiguity surrounding the difficult issues she raises
Summary
The dystopic plot of Butler’s trilogy creates a situation in which the human characters face a stark power asymmetry that overrides the typical politeness norms of an OC. The implication is that politeness might keep people from criticizing her—from calling her decisions “foolish.” Butler closely associates the Oankali aliens with behavior that privileges avoidance of conflict and confrontation.
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