One of the central themes in The
Fifth Season and in the Stillness is oppression. As the oppressors, the
Guardians of the Fulcrum go to great lengths to exert their power over the orogenes
through striking fear as well as restricting choice. The control the Guardians
look to have over the orogenes stems from the powers of the orogenes, where in
the eyes of the Guardians, can be useful to them if controlled.
While on the way to the training
programs for orogenes in the Fulcrum, the guardian Schaffa looks to teach
Damaya how to control her powers while under pain, when Schaffa says, “Never
say no to me… I am your Guardian. I will break every bone in your hand, every
bone in your body, if I deem it necessary to make the world safe from you” (99). Schaffa went as far as breaking the hand of
Damaya just to teach her the value of controlling her powers. Additionally,
Schaffa threatens to hurt Damaya even more in order to establish superiority
over her and to make her obedient.
The influence the Fulcrum has on
the orogenes leads to a lack of choice in the lives of orogenes. While
reflecting over the control the Guardians and the Fulcrum have, Alabaster says
to Syenite, “Even within the fulcrum we always have to think about how they
want us to act. We can never just… be” (123). Here, Jemisin suggests that the
oppressors control the choices of the oppressed or marginalized in order to
maintain their power or superior status. Even while in the fulcrum, the
orogenes are always thinking about how they are expected to act and are never
free to make their own decisions.
The scene that stood out the most
to me while reading was when Alabaster takes Syenite to see a node for the
first time after a major shake occurs. Not only did they find the node dead
upon arriving at the node station, after further investigating had realized the
node had been lobotomized as a baby so that its only function was to quell
shakes. After Alabaster takes Syenite to see a node, he says, “You think any of
us matter beyond what we can do for them… The only reason they don’t do this to
all of us is because we’re more versatile, more useful, if we can control
ourselves” (143). For the guardians and
the people of the fulcrum, the orogenes are nothing more than an instinct to be
used to stop the shakes. The child is an
extreme example in the story of the Guardians of the Fulcrum restricting choice
of the orogenes, and more importantly, shows how Guardians view the orogenes as
nothing more than an item that can be used to help them if controlled.
The concept of the guardians only having power that stems from the orogenes power has intrigued me throughout The Fifth Season. This post highlights how guardians hurt and strike fear into orogenes in order to control them and use them. I have struggled with this concept as it relates to real life. The oppressed are not powerful in any way and those that initiate oppression of minorities do not seem to gain power by controlling the actions of others. Instead, it seems that because of the power that some groups have, they are able to oppress others. I am not sure what Jemisin is trying to do through this allegory of the guardian’s power stemming from the orogenes power.
ReplyDeleteJemisin does purposely focus on the idea that “something’s missing from the history” and she says, “there’s a hole, a gap” (317). This could be trying to make a point that we do not know all about our history and how certain groups came to power and oppressed other groups in the first place. It is interesting to think about this concept and I would love to read more about how this plays out and if the history is ever filled in. Jemisin does a great job raising questions like, “will our own history ever be filled in?” and, “what lead to the oppression of others in the first place?”
To build off the point you have made, I believe that in addition to control, fear is a key factor in the novel when it comes to implementing control. Those in power such as the guardians don’t simply use control to their advantage, but employ fear to help solidify their position. This is evident by the power they hold over the orogenes, and the horrors that Guardians impose upon orogenes such as breaking Damaya’s hand as you mentioned. This exemplifies the use of fear to create control as fear of such punishment is a motivating factor for those in The Fulcrum. Similarly, even Alabaster, a 10-ring orogene, fears Guardians. That fear goes to show the power that Guardians hold is an extension of the fear they instill. Then, there is the fear that has been established of orogenes throughout society. They have been painted as evil monsters that aren’t humans, to the degree that upon discovering an orogene, normal townspeople would make an effort to come together and kill them. The ability of those in power to create this perception of orogenes through fear only furthers their ability to control those under them, and keep orogenes at the bottom of society.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the novel “The Fifth Season,” N.K. Jemisin relates many real-world issues to characters in the book, most noticeably that of the oppressed orogenes, and the great power that each of them possesses. During the beginning of the book, I thought this was Jemisin’s way of telling her readers that the oppressed people of our world have more power than their oppressors; however, after considering this blog post, and the quote included, “Never say no to me… I am your Guardian. I will break every bone in your hand, every bone in your body, if I deem it necessary to make the world safe from you” (99). This quote made me reconsider my thoughts on the meaning of the book, going from thinking that Jemisin wants everyone to believe they have power, to rather that the oppressors of our world are evil because of how they misuse their power. This quote shows how the Guardians are only powerful because they instill fear in the orogenes, and not because they are any more powerful than anyone else. Jemisin wants to relay to the reader that those who oppress others want others to fear them and do so by hurting them. She wants the oppressed to know that they should not fear their oppressors.
ReplyDeleteI feel that the idea of control lends to the oppression of orogenes in the same way that it enables the slavery of a people. While Jemisin doesn’t write about enslaved people (at least in the sense of physical labor), orogenes are essentially enslaved by the Fulcrum. They are forced to learn to control of their powers and work for the Fulcrum, and if they can’t achieve much control, they must work as node maintainers, where their self-control is severed, and they are reduced to their instinctive abilities (141). When Alabaster and Syenite witness this firsthand, it’s apparent that this lack of choice extends even to how they respond to the situation. As Syenite pictures the young node maintainer’s “slack-jawed, dead gaze,” Alabaster tells her, “[if] anyone asks, you’re glad he’s dead. Feel it. Believe it. He almost killed more people that we can count, after all. And if anyone asks how you feel about it, say you understand that’s why they do these things to us. You know it’s for our own good. You know it’s for everyone’s” (147). Alabaster knows that they don’t even have the freedom to speak up for their own because they are under the control of the Guardians of the Fulcrum and doing so would be considered a form of resistance. Their control is not only in resisting their choice but also in fear of what would happen if they did anything that could be considered defiance.
ReplyDeleteI would like to expand on the theme of control outlined in this blog post. Specifically, I would like to expand on the claim that “[t]he control the Guardians look to have over the orogenes stems from the powers of the orogenes, where in the eyes of the Guardians, can be useful to them if controlled” (above blog post). I agree with this statement; the Guardians gain power via their control over the orogenes. Schaffa even says at one point, “A Guardian’s connections with his assigned orogenes can help to stave off the worst” (Jemisin 328). Though vague, Schaffa is referring to Timay—a Guardian who he kills after she seemingly loses her mind. It can be inferred, then, that the Guardians quite literally rely on controlling the orogenes to stay sane.
ReplyDeleteThe way in which the Guardians gain control over their assigned orogenes is particularly sinister. It is not just that they have a mysterious implant that allows them to control orogeny; nor is it that they are the non-orogenic children of Fulcrum orogens. These things on their own would still be able to control orogenes, but only physically. They could stop a rebellious orogene, but it is much more effective to prevent orogenes form rebelling in the first place. To control the orogenes body and soul, the Guardians love their orogene and only hurt them if they disobey. Damaya says, “There is an order to life in the Fulcrum, see, and it is this: If one has not displeased them, the Guardians are the closest thing to safety a rogga will ever have… Schaffa loves her, in his tender and terrifying way” (Jemisin 329). Control comes through fear, but there also must be an order to the fear. Orogenes are incentivized to cooperate because, when they do, they find something like a family. If they rebel, they disappoint this family and are in danger of losing it. If the Guardians were constantly cruel to the orogenes and punished them either way, there would be no incentive to follow the rules. This, the most effective form of control comes under the guise of love.