Fledgling

Fledgling to me was a roller coaster. My nerves and conscience were on edge for the first 50 pages or so. Everything that I’d learned about the sacred morals of sex (if your Catholic then it’s more like the absolute evils of sex), was doing a 180 on me; I just couldn’t tell why. I know I didn’t do a step by step rethink of my principles, but somehow by the end of the book, I was ok with a grown man sleeping with a woman in a 10 year old body. In the beginning I found it absolutely disgusting. After the sex scene I was nauseous. Slowly but surely, as I made my way through the book I became desensitized. Octavia Butler accomplished something with her writing that made me question principles that I’d learned at a young age. I’ve never questioned those ethics in my life; what could? I can’t say that I consciously asked the opposing questions that would break down the walls of my, said ideology. I believe that I made myself accept it based on wanting to finish the book. There was a film on TV that I was watching, it was an HBO film about a young girl discovering her body and becoming a woman. She ends up being touched inappropriately by her male neighbor; she baby sat his son. I wish I could tell you about the rest of the film but, I had to turn in off before I threw up on the floor. Butler went head to head with sexual taboos and came out the victor.

The scenes where sex is taking place become sexy and hot by the end of the book. A power is given to Shori that is recognized. She has a sexual prowess by the end that is unrivaled by most of the characters in the book; male and female. She becomes a sexual figure and from our discussions, it seems that we all accepted her as one. Judging by the family units that they had, I would have thought Stephanie Meyer had a hand in writing fledgling, with here Mormon background and all. The weird unit didn’t discriminate male and female, (Shori didn’t discriminate, others did), black and white and Shori loved them all. It seemed that she had strongest feelings for her first in both sexes. Theodora and Wright seemed to be the drug of choice, but Shori didn’t mind going elsewhere for food. She enjoyed others but would always compare them to Wright or Theodora.

“He smelt delicious but not as appetizing as Wright smelled.”

I don’t know if it has anything to do with a sexual/ lose your virginity thing but that’s what I see in it. Grant it, Shori wasn’t a vampire virgin before Wright, but she wasn’t able to remember her symbionts before him. So it seems that she lost her “virginity” and has that attachment to him. All the Ina feel that way about their first. In Shoris’ fathers’ house, one symbiont explains to Wright how lucky he is to be chosen as her first. I guess you always remember your first. Wright is what is known in some scientific circles as a “stage 5 clinger.”

I didn’t bring up this question in class because at first I thought it to be more of a joke rather than an educated question in need of discussing. The more I think about it I have to wonder what Butlers meaning for doing it was. I've come to believe that no matter what an author puts in a book, or a director into a movie, down to the smallest detail, it has some meaning in the story. If it didn’t then there would be no reason to add it to a novel or script. Basically there is no such thing as filler. The point that I'm referring to is Shoris' age. As compared to Wright, who is I think they said 23, Shori on a visual level is about 10 years old, way too young for Wright. Shori if you count years is 53, way too old for Wright. Either way you look at it, in a world that’s fair and just, there is just no way that they could be together. They somehow end up together despite all odds. I don’t know if love knows no bounds or if it knows no age is the point trying to be put a crossed, but personally I find it provocative that we don’t seem as bothered by the latter situation. There’s about 13 years difference between how she looks and how old Wright is, but there is about 33 years difference between how old she is and how old Wright is. Minus the connotations that come with being a 10 year old (I know, a lot of subtext to subtract) Shori is the real cradle robber in this story. She’s the perverted older woman hitting on guys her sons age at the bar. She is known in most circles as a Cougar.

Please tell me your opinions and comments on that last point. I find it extremely interesting and would love to go further into it.