Dana Schaufert
Dr. Adam Johns
ENGCMP 0200- Seminar in Composition
29 October 2008

Defining Human Nature

In Octavia E. Butler’s novel Lilith’s Brood, humans are placed in a world foreign to their own. This unfamiliarity is what exposes human nature at its purest. The Oankali now rule and humans are inferior. But this does not take the focus off of the humans; it more so puts them under a magnifying glass. Although Butler’s novel Lilith’s Brood is centered around the lives of the Oankali, several features of human nature are portrayed throughout the book.

From the beginning of Lilith’s Brood, Butler portrays human nature as being destructive. War had destroyed Earth, so in a sense, humans had destroyed Earth. “Humanity in its attempt to destroy itself had made the world unlivable. She had been certain she would die even though she had survived the bombing without a scratch. She had considered her survival a misfortune – a promise of a more lingering death” (Butler 15). According to the ooloi, this destructiveness is derived from the human body being “fatally flawed.” Jdahya expanded on ooloi’s statement by saying, “You have a mismatched pair of genetic characteristics. Either alone would have been useful, would have aided the survival of your species. But the two together are lethal. It was only a matter of time before they destroyed you” (Butler 38). These two characteristics are that humans are intelligent and also hierarchial at the same time. Intelligence enables us to deny unfavorable facts and being hierarchial is a terrestrial characterstic, which is clearly demonstrated by Paul Titus when he beat and almost raped Lilith. Paul saw himself above Lilith since he had been awake longer than her. He felt that she owed him something; that something happened to be sex. Paul told Lilith, “I never got to do it before,” and continued, “They said I could do it with you. They said you could stay here if you wanted to. And you had to go and mess it up!” (Butler 96). In concurrence with harming someone else, human’s demonstrate destructiveness through self-harm, or suicide. Although Lilith chose not to end her life when Jdahya offered to, many humans in her position did resort to suicide. The reasoning behind many of the suicides was isolation. It is true that many humans need time to themselves, but too much time alone can be damaging.

The need for contact, preferably human contact, is another factor that Butler uses to portray human nature in her novel. Lilith’s isolation put her on the edge of going insane. “‘So far,’ she said, ‘only boredom and isolation have driven me to want to die’” (Butler 25). However, when Sharad appeared in her room, Lilith felt more content and at ease. “She could not remember when she had last touched someone. She had not realized how much she had missed it” (Butler 10). This statement that Lilith had said truly demonstrates a human’s need for contact. Even when Jdahya, who Lilith initially feared, came into the isolation room, she enjoyed the company. Luckily, for the sake of Lilith’s sanity, she was not caged in this room forever.

Surprisingly, even after being in isolation for so long, Lilith was hesitant to leave her “box” and go outside. “She took a step backward, away from all the alien vastness. The isolation room that she had hated for so long suddenly seemed safe and comforting” (Butler 30). Although this happening is surprising, it can easily be explained through another factor Butler used to portray human nature. Human’s naturally fear the unknown. Not only is Lilith dealing with the fear of this unknown world among creatures unlike herself, but the Oankali only answer about half of the questions she asks them. For example, when Lilith questioned Jdahya if the Oankali were planning on testing her desire to live on page 26, Jdahya remained silent. Lilith responded to the silence by saying, “If you knew anything at all about human imagination, you’d know you were doing exactly the wrong thing” (Butler 26). Questions that remained unanswered terrified Lilith, as if the sight of the Oankali was not enough. She had no reliable source for answers, which made matters all the worse. As human beings we need answers or else our fear of the unknown will heighten.

In conclusion, in Lilith’s Brood, Butler portrays human nature as being destructive, in need of contact, and fearful of the unknown. These factors are demonstrated through character’s actions, thoughts, and behavior throughout the novel. The experiences Lilith endures creates a canvas for defining human nature. Butler, in these aspects, sums up human nature to tee.