Book IV for Wild Seed

In Wild Seed, Butler rewrites history as a strange and alien place. And although the novel hints at the consequences of this history — since we are, in many ways, living it right now — its main concern is with the past. But, as we’ve seen, this is always a past that informs (or deforms?) the future. Butler makes the connections between past and future clear even in the structure of her novel: Book I takes place in 1690, Book II in 1741, Book III in 1840. And the Patternist series itself, of which this book is a part, extends this chronology further forward into future worlds.

For this Think piece, you will write Book IV of Wild Seed, continuing the story … in 2015. What happens to the characters? What happens to the world of the novel? How are the major themes, questions, and issues of this world translated into 2015?

To get started, create a title for Book IV, following the format of Books I and II in the novel.

Then, think about what happens. What must happen, given the constraints introduced in the first three Books? How must our contemporary world be reimagined, given the world introduced in the first three Books of the novel?

Finally, write a synopsis (brief outline) of your new Book IV. In your synopsis, make sure to discuss not only what happens in this new Book IV, but also how and why you made these decisions about plot and character development. How does your Book IV reflect the themes, questions, and issues raised by the novel? And how do you show their relevance to the world in 2015?

Remember that you have very little space (only 300-500 words!) to develop a new Book IV. Your synopsis must be tightly argued and concisely written, clearing focusing on a single, well defined position or perspective (your thesis).

To meet the minimum criteria for consideration for a 4.0, your Think piece must:

have a title following the format for Books I, II, and III in the novel (“Think piece 3” does not count as a title);

demonstrate clear and coherent organization;

meet the required length of 300-500 words (writing more is ok, writing less is not);

incorporate at least two direct quotations from Wild Seed to support your interpretation;

correctly cite each quotation, using the MLA in-text citation style.