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Chapter 3
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in 2001: A Space Odyssey, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Collaboration vs. Individualism
Tools and Human Evolution
Space Travel
The Perils of Knowledge
Summary
Analysis
Equipped with new tools and skills shown to them by the monolith, Moon-Watcher and his tribe have been given the chance to become masters of their world. A year later, they are no longer starved, and have time for leisure and the “first rudiments of thought.” However, their new “Utopia” is marred by the existence of the leopard and the Others. One day, having ingeniously dragged home an antelope to eat in the caves, Moon-Watcher discovers the leopard has followed them. Moon-Watcher and his companions are no longer helpless, however, and attack the over-confident leopard with rocks. Fleeing, the leopard falls off the ledge and dies. Moon-Watcher realizes his world has changed: he is no longer “powerless” against the world.
The monolith’s teachings have a profound effect on the man-apes. Their basic existential needs taken care of, the man-apes now have time to nurture and grow their capacity for intelligent thought, resulting in further innovations. Moon-Watcher, for instance, discovers the defensive use of blunt-force weapons, successfully fending off an attack from the leopard. This signals a major shift in the man-apes’ relationship to the world, showing them that they are no longer “powerless.” With their new tools and skills, the man-apes are now capable of shaping the world around them.
Themes
