Parable of the Sower was a quick and simple read, perhaps too simple. The parallels which Butler drew between slavery and her near-future society were alarmingly obvious. It didn’t seem to me to be so much a parallel as it was a re-telling, set in a different time. I also had issues with the whole Earthseed religion. There should have been more background or explanation as to why, or how this teenage girl, Lauren receives these messages. That would have made it more believable and realistic. The situation struck me as random and contrite. Where does she get this “wisdom” from? Is it connected to her hyperempathy?
I am used to having to work harder to find meaning and parallels in novels while Parable just kind of puts it all out there. This future society is obviously a critique of patriarchy while humankind is slipping back and indulging in old atrocities such as slavery. The heroine is there to save it all with Earthseed. One of the saving graces for me of this story, which isn’t actually in the novel, is finding out that Acorn was a failure. The indeterminate ending lent bit of realism to the story;s Butler’s critique on the very idea of utopia. One can look at almost any aspect of society in Parable as a commentary on the status of today’s society (or society at the time the book was written). This sort of straight-forward parallelism makes me uneasy, I feel like I should have to dig deeper and search through layers for meaning. It’s refreshing in a way, but also leaves me wanting something with a little bit more substance.