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The Xenogenesis Trilogy: The Utopian Writing of Octavia E. Butler
Hejna, Magdalena ; Veselá, Pavla (advisor) ; Procházka, Martin (referee)
This thesis analyses the three main characters of Octavia E. Butler's Xenogenesis trilogy - Lilith, Akin, and Jodahs, and studies each book in the trilogy in order to trace utopian elements in Butler's writing. It explores different ideas of what utopia and the utopian is, and, through this, proposes that it is the impulse of change, constant becoming, that constitutes utopian writing. The thesis states that even though Butler herself was skeptical towards the concept of utopia, her work is an example of modern utopian writing - a constant striving towards a better future through the creation of worlds that inspire and call for change. The introduction starts with the main question of the thesis: "Is Butler a utopian writer?" It focuses on the author's own approach towards utopia and her self-distancing from being labelled a utopian writer. The following part is centered on the development of the concept of "utopia" itself. It starts with the first use of the term by Thomas More in 1516, which initiated an understanding of the term as a "better place," then presents different criticisms of utopia, which point to its dystopian nature, and finishes with the modern concepts of utopia that revitalize its potential. The introduction concludes with the brief summary of the planned research on the three...
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