WOW, I really enjoyed reading Octavia Butler's Dawn (1987). Of all the novels we've read for this course, Dawn has the most compelling narrative voice and feels the most current, though it was written over thirty years ago and is predicated on nuclear winter. Perhaps this is because the novel primarily deals with themes as broad as all… Continue reading Dawn, Parts III & IV
I've really enjoyed Octavia Butler's Dawn (1987) thus far. While Samuel Delany's Trouble on Triton (1976) was pretty difficult for me to read, I find myself getting engrossed in Dawn's narrative. Part of this, I think, is because Lilith is a far more likable protagonist. In addition, Butler's narrative style is much more accessible than Delany's parenthetical, stream-of-consciousness narration. As… Continue reading Dawn, Parts I & II
I found Samuel Delany's Trouble on Triton (1976) quite a challenging read, which is perhaps part of Delany's goal. Bron is particularly unlikeable, at least in my experience, which keeps me from getting engrossed in the novel like I might usually in other fiction works. He seems very focused on remaining unique and un-categorizable while separating… Continue reading Trouble on Triton
While reading The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin (1969), I was struck by how it simultaneously seems so current but yet so outdated. For instance, the novel's focus on deconstructing gender was very familiar to me as a student in a liberal collegiate environment. However, Genly Ai's constantly misgenders the Gethenians as male-… Continue reading The Left Hand of Darkness
The third and final volume of Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1818) is an excellent conclusion of the themes which have been building throughout the book such as sadness versus remorse, selfishness, ethics, mental illness, vengeance, and faith. One of the themes which interests me the most is the progression of the creature's power. He begins as… Continue reading Frankenstein (Volume III)
I initially approached reading Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1818) with some confusion as to what feminist themes might be present. I remembered the novel from high school and from my recollection there were few if any important female characters. As I began reading and encountered descriptions of Elizabeth Lavenza and Caroline Beaufort, I was… Continue reading Frankenstein (Volumes I & II)
Feminist Science Fictions 