Parable of the Talents

“These days when more than half the people in the country can’t read at all, history is just one more vast unknown to them.”

Lauren bitterly comments on why she thinks Jarret has risen to power: Lack of education has left people unable to accurately understand the past. Therefore, they are vulnerable to individuals misleading them and misrepresenting facts about America its history. This comment is important because it shows one of Lauren’s key values and a key tenet of Earthseed: the importance of literacy, education, and critical thinking. It also shows her compassion and awareness of human psychology, as she doesn’t think that all of the individuals who support Jarret are necessarily bad people, but she does see that they are vulnerable to being deceived and manipulated.

“Sharers who survive learn early to take the pain and keep quiet. We keep our vulnerability as secret as we can.”

In this quotation, Lauren comments on how individuals with hyperempathy syndrome (“sharers”) develop a set of skills to cope with their heightened vulnerability. This quotation is important because it provides insight into Lauren’s character and behavior: she is accustomed to repressing and concealing the physical pain that is often triggered for her. This insight is important because it foreshadows Lauren’s ability to shut down and conceal her psychological pain after losing her husband and child. At times she is perceived as cold, but Lauren’s experiences with hyperempathy have prepared her to maintain firm control over what she is experiencing inside.

“Its promise is of hard work and brand new possibilities, problems, challenges, and changes. Apparently, that can be surprisingly seductive to some people.”

Larkin contrasts Earthseed with other religions and expresses her surprise that people are drawn to it. The quotation reveals Larkin’s sometimes sarcastic and embittered tone and skepticism about Earthseed. The use of the word “seductive” indicates that Larkin views her mother as potentially deceptive and fraudulent, selling people on promises. It also shows that the misogynistic beliefs of Christian America may have influenced Larkin since her comment implies that Earthseed’s popularity is linked to her mother’s charisma and appeal.

“It was a familiar sort of story—horrible and ordinary. Almost everyone in Acorn has a horrible, ordinary story to tell.”

Lauren reflects on the atrocious story told by Dan Noyer about the fate of his family. Lauren’s language provides a juxtaposition that reveals what life is like in the novel’s dystopian setting: horrific things are also unremarkable because almost everyone has experienced violence and loss. The idea of horrible, ordinary stories reflects Butler’s approach to narrative throughout the novel, representing devastating events in calm, precise prose.

“We say ‘God is Change,’ but the truth is, we fear change as much as anyone else does.”

Lauren comments on the discrepancy between the teachings of Earthseed and the reality of human psychology. Lauren sees Earthseed as aspirational, but she is pragmatic enough to know that individuals will always be resistant to feeling unsettled and unsafe. The quotation shows that Lauren has compassion for human experiences and emotions and does not expect anyone to be perfect or superhuman. Lauren believes that Earthseed can help people be the best versions of themselves and act for the greater good.

“I don’t know how to deal with it. Writing about it helps. Somehow, writing always helps.”

After years of believing he was dead, Lauren suddenly encounters Marcus; she is stunned and overwhelmed. In this quotation, she reflects that she uses writing to process her emotions around this experience. The quote foreshadows how writing will subsequently help Lauren during her traumatic experience of enslavement. The quotation also develops Lauren as a character by highlighting the vulnerability and uncertainty that often does not appear in her outward behavior. On the surface, Lauren usually seems to be a calm, composed, and even detached individual, but this quotation shows how lost and confused she can be.

“All the truths of Earthseed existed somewhere before I found them and put them together. They were in the patterns of history, in science, philosophy, religion, or literature. I didn’t make any of them up.”

When Marcus criticizes Earthseed, Lauren defends it. Lauren tries to explain and justify Earthseed’s teachings by showing that she drew them from other traditions. The quotation reveals how Lauren sees herself: she doesn’t need to be a founder or an innovator, but rather she is someone who can see connections and forge community. This viewpoint contrasts with how other religions are often founded and the perspective of male religious leaders, who often present themselves as creating or disseminating specific messages and ideas.

“But now, instead of feeling important and proud, he feels angry and embarrassed. I had to let him inflict those feelings on himself. I couldn’t let him begin to divide Acorn.”

After Marcus’s first attempt to preach at Earthseed fails, Lauren reflects on his experience. Rather than giving Marcus his own voice, Butler has Lauren present her perspective to make her a more sympathetic character. Lauren has the compassion to recognize Marcus’s feelings, but she is also somewhat cold and prioritizes the community’s wellbeing. Throughout the novel, Lauren consistently puts the collective good ahead of the experiences of any single individual, and this quotation offers an early example of this behavior.

“When we have no difficult, long-term purpose to strive toward, we fight each other. We destroy ourselves.”

Speaking with Bankole, Lauren argues that the goal of Earthseed (establishing colonies on other planets) is necessary because humanity needs a long-term plan. Given the many tragedies that have happened, many people might be resigned that things will never get better, there is no point in trying, and the demise of humanity is inevitable. Lauren is realistic about humanity but also optimistic. She believes that, with the right structures in place, human beings can channel their energies in productive rather than destructive ways. The quotation shows Lauren’s optimistic, action-oriented, and community-centered values.

“I still have paper, pens, and pencils. None of our captors values these things, so no one has yet taken them from me.”

Lauren is miraculously able to continue writing during her imprisonment at Camp Christian, which means that there can be records of her experience. In this quotation, Lauren reflects on why she can retain her writing supplies. The lack of education and respect for history and recording experiences is part of what makes Jarret’s followers so dangerous, but here it is ironically inverted so as to give Lauren an advantage. Ignorance is part of how Jarret’s Crusaders operate, but it is also a weakness for them and foreshadows their eventual downfall.

“We can escape from them or kill them if we can learn about them and pool our knowledge.”

Almost immediately after Acorn is overrun and the community members are imprisoned, Lauren starts to develop a plan and a strategy. The quotation shows Lauren’s unwavering belief in information, strategic decision-making, and patience. Lauren knows that she and her followers cannot achieve freedom through physical force, especially because they are collared. Instead, they will have to be cunning and work together. The quotation shows how the values that Lauren has developed in Acorn, and her strong leadership, continue to benefit her and her followers even after they are conquered.

“Submission was no protection. If any of us were to survive, we must escape these people as quickly as possible.”

At first, Lauren is unsure how bad imprisonment will be, but this quotation shows her realizing that her captors will be merciless and that compromise or cooperation will not be possible. Because Lauren is so community-oriented, she can’t help hoping that some sort of cooperative relationship might be possible. When Lauren accepts that there will be no mercy from the captors, she becomes a different sort of leader: ruthlessly focused on eventual escape. The quotation also shows Lauren’s trauma when Bankole is killed impacts her, making her determined to survive.

“People and possessions could be snatched away. But somehow, it had not occurred to me that…that bits of my own mind could be snatched away too.”

Part of what makes being shocked by the collars so horrible is the physical suffering and how they impact an individual’s memory and consciousness. In her life before the imprisonment, Lauren has already endured a lot of physical pain, especially due to her hyperempathy syndrome. This quotation shows that she is more afraid of losing her mind and memories than anything else. The word choice of “bits” shows that Lauren already feels her sanity and inner self fragmenting, while the word choice “snatched” reveals the violent and aggressive way that the prisoners treat her. The more time Lauren spends imprisoned, the more afraid and vulnerable she becomes.

“This time, though, it’s too late for fire to be the destroyer that we remembered. The things that we created and loved had already been destroyed. This time, the fires only cleansed.”

After Lauren and her followers escape from Camp Christian, they set their former home on fire. This quotation highlights that fire can paradoxically be both destructive and healing. Fire functions as a metaphor for the Earthseed belief in inevitable change; things can be destroyed, but that destruction creates new growth opportunities. The reflection on the fire shows how Lauren is deeply anchored in the natural world’s cycles and how this awareness allows her to survive personal tragedies. Lauren can accept the loss of Acorn and the loss of her partner and daughter because she holds on to hope for eventual renewal.

“I sent my people away. We survived slavery together, but I didn’t believe that we could survive freedom together.”

In this quotation, Lauren reflects on her decision to break up the Acorn community after the escape from Camp Christian. By using the language of “my people,” Lauren reveals how deeply she is bonded to the Acorn community. Especially after the loss of Bankole and Larkin, Lauren is effectively giving up her only family. The language of the quotation also shows that Lauren indisputably sees herself as a leader who can make decisions on behalf of a larger group. While others might have differing opinions, she sees herself as the one to make decisions for all of the Earthseed followers.

“My ancestors in this hemisphere were, by law, chattel slaves. In the U.S, they were chattel slaves for two and a half centuries—at least 10 generations.”

In this quotation, Lauren reflects on the important historical context of her experience of enslavement. As a Black woman in America, Lauren lives with the knowledge that her ancestors were enslaved, and after her time at Camp Christian, she has a much deeper understanding of the suffering they must have lived through. This quotation shows that while Butler works with tropes associated with dystopian worlds and science fiction, she also roots her novel in experiences that have already taken place. Lauren’s time as an enslaved person is horrifying but not new or unimaginable.

“Earthseed prepares you to live in the world that is and try to shape the world that you want. But none of it is really easy.”

As Lauren reckons with separation from the members of the former Acorn community, she reflects on the role of Earthseed philosophy. In contrast to many other religious traditions that might focus on an afterlife or being reincarnated for future lives, Earthseed focuses on what individuals experience during their lifetime and tries to help them develop resilience and optimism in the face of change and suffering. Lauren can recognize something that individuals like Larkin or Marcus see as a problem with Earthseed: not providing enough comfort, hope, or escapism. However, for Lauren, this absence is part of what makes the followers of Earthseed stronger.

“Normal people wouldn’t have survived what we’ve survived. If we were normal, we’d be dead.”

Lauren speaks to Len and consoles her for the traumas they have both survived. As someone who also experiences hyperempathy syndrome, Lauren assists Len in seeing her identity as a strength and helps her feel less alone. While this quotation shows Lauren’s empathy and care for others, it also reveals why some characters perceive her as manipulative. At the same time, as Lauren is comforting Len, she is also hoping to convert Len into a follower of Earthseed and make her into a teacher so that the religion can spread and grow. Lauren is not lying, but she also has additional motives beyond simply helping Len feel better.

“But to my amazement, I missed my adoptive parents. I missed the church. I missed the life I had grown up with.”

Larkin chooses to leave her adoptive family and the Christian American faith, but in this quotation, she notices the surprising emotions that arise for her. This quotation is significant because it reflects the theme of individuals developing emotional bonds with systems and traditions, even if they don’t benefit them. Larkin recognizes many destructive things within the Alexander family and the Christian American faith, but she cannot help becoming attached to them. The quotation is also important for understanding why Larkin will subsequently become so attached to Marcus: when someone is cut off from their community, they become very vulnerable.

“It’s about learning to live in partnership with one another in small communities, and at the same time, working out a sustainable partnership with our environment. It’s about treating education and adaptability as the absolute essentials that they are.”

Lauren explains to Len the key beliefs of Earthseed, highlighting what she sees as the most important tenets of the faith. For much of the novel, Butler reveals these values by showing Lauren and other Earthseed followers living according to them, rather than openly talking about them. Only toward the end of the novel does Lauren talk more about these beliefs as values and teachings. This narrative shift reflects the change in Lauren’s approach: rather than focusing on small communities where individuals largely learn from observation and participation, she will move to a more traditional model of disseminating teachings and then having others spread those teachings in turn.

“The truth is, preparing for interstellar travel and then sending out ships filled with colonists is bound to be a job so long, thankless, expensive, and difficult that I suspect that only a religion could do it.”

Lauren explains why she feels Earthseed will succeed where governments and businesses have largely failed. Lauren is pragmatic and well-versed in history, and she understands that religious faith creates a level of commitment that almost nothing else can rival. This quotation raises questions about Lauren’s rationale for Earthseed; she is sincere in her beliefs, but she also has a very pragmatic outlook on the advantages of creating a new religious faith.

“All Earthseed was her family. We never really were, Uncle Marc and I. She never really needed us, so we didn’t let ourselves need her.”

Larkin sums up her bitterness towards her mother and explains why the two women could never establish a relationship. Larkin can never shake her belief that Lauren cared more about the religion than her child, and she interprets Lauren’s lack of vulnerability as coldness and aloofness. Even after reading Lauren’s journals, Larkin cannot fully understand that Lauren has been forced to learn to repress and compartmentalize her emotions. Decades of trauma have also changed how Lauren shows emotions, leading Larkin to assume that her mother doesn’t need her, regardless of whether this is true.

“If you want a thing—truly want it, want it so badly that you need it as you need air to breathe, then unless you die, you will have it.”

At the end of the novel, Lauren reflects on the achievement of her goal: for followers of Earthseed to go to outer space to establish colonies there. At times in her past, this goal seemed completely unattainable, but Lauren never wavered, reflecting the important theme of conviction and faith. The belief that Lauren articulates in this quotation explains why she was able to continue to drive forward, no matter what terrible events and obstacles she encountered. The simile of comparing her desire to achieve her goal to her need to breathe air shows that Lauren could never have abandoned her work with Earthseed.