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Motifs
Definition of Setting
Setting is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can be a real place like the city of New York, or it can be an imagined... read full definition
Setting is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can be a real place like the city of New York, or... read full definition
Setting is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can be a real place like the... read full definition
Setting
Explanation and Analysis:
The story's plot takes place entirely within Gan's childhood home. While a childhood home might typically be thought of as a place of safety and comfort, the continued presence of T'Gatoi and sudden entrance of Bram Lomas prove how the Terrans' domestic spaces have been continually penetrated and violated. While the story begins within Gan's understanding of the world as a child, both he and the audience come to understand how the N'Tlic's predetermined fates have transformed their ideas of safety and comfort.
Gan's home is set within an alien world of which the Tlic are native rulers. Gan and the other Terrans—who are foreigners on this planet—live within the safety of the Preserve. The Preserve is a designated area on the planet where the Terrans can live without fear of being misused and taken hostage by the Tlic. Thus, the Preserve is meant to be a setting of protection.
However, Butler interrogates ideas of home and safety by detailing Bram Lomas's gruesome and violent birth. Not only does this transform Gan's childhood home from a place of comfort to a place of violence, but it also reminds both Gan and the audience that there is no escape for the Terrans—and especially the N'Tlic—from oppression on the Tlic's planet.
Related Themes:
