100 pages 3 hours read

Octavia E. Butler

Dawn

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1987

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Themes

Otherness

One of the main themes of the novel is the idea of otherness. Lilith learns that one of the primary reasons that humanity was fated to destroy itself is its innate hierarchical nature, its unavoidable tendency to view all people in terms of hierarchy. This also leads to prejudice against those seen as outsiders, others who belong to a different group. When confronted with the extreme otherness of the physical appearance of the Oankali, humans reject them outright, with disgust and revulsion. The Oankali, by contrast, value difference and seek it out. To promote their very survival as a species, they must continually foster diversity and cultural pluralism in themselves. They need a constant state of genetic change, so they “trade” with other species to adapt and adopt new genetic traits. Lilith is chosen to be the “parent” of the human group because of her ability to adapt to a new culture, so she can be the liaison between humans and Oankali. As an African-American female, Lilith has spent her life being part of groups outside the majority group, so she is accustomed to dealing with this challenge.

The concept of otherness is thus shown to be a social construct, one that leads the Awakened humans to fear and reject Lilith, due to her connection to the Oankali and her demonstrated alterations such as enhanced strength.