Over the course of the quarter, I’ve noticed a trend of
paradoxes in our novels. In Parable of
the Sower, there is of course the paradox of the Universe and God shaping
each other (78), and also Lauren both preaching and resisting Change (262).
However, Parable of the Sower
introduces some new features.
One of them is meta! “Cities controlled by big companies are
old hat in science fiction” (123).
Another is direct reference. Keith describes the pyro
addicts: “Paints. They shave off all their hair…and they paint their skin green
or blue or red or yellow” (110), and later Lauren refers to them as “painted
faces” (157), which is exactly what the Omega generation are called in P.D.
James’ The Children of Men (1992). I
think this is especially interesting because James’ novel also deals in strong
Christian/religion themes.
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