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Article: Theorizing fear: Octavia Butler and the realist utopia.
- Article from:
- Utopian Studies
- Article date:
- June 22, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 Society for Utopian Studies. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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"Again, men have no pleasure, but on the contrary a great deal of grief, in keeping company where there is no power able to overawe them all." (Hobbes 75)
"It's better to teach people than to scare them, Lauren. If you scare them and nothing happens, they lose their fear, and you lose some of your authority with them. It's harder to scare them a second time, harder to teach them, harder to win back their trust. Best to begin by teaching."
(Butler, Parable of the Sower 58)
Hobbes and Lauren Oya Olamina's father each understand the powerful nature of fear. Both Hobbes and Lauren's father seek to answer fear with authority. For Hobbes, the ...