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People become dependent on verbal communication and cannot imagine a world without words and speech. Many great novels and short stories represent utopias or dystopias in which characters have to live. Compared to long narratives with much space for details, short tales require high-level professionalism and attention to plot, settings, and characters. At the end of the 20th century, Octavia E. Butler published her Hugo-Awarded science fiction short story, “Speech Sounds.” A mysterious disease made many people speechless and unable to talk or exchange information using their language. The author’s mood changes the plot, and the choice of characters and setting contribute to a better understanding of the message. The alternative universe of “Speech Sounds” is Butler’s attempt to predict the existing threats and neglect of communication by developing a strong theme, using interesting characters within the same settings, and maintaining the same tone and multiple emotions.
One of the strongest aspects of the “Speech Sounds” plot is its unique description of a dystopia where people are deprived of verbal language and free communication. In pursuit of wealth, health, and success, individuals lose the main element of their existence – the ability to speak. Society faces a disease that is difficult to control and understand. For example, Rey, the protagonist, is “no longer certain of the degree of her own impairment” (Butler, 2014, p. 4). Butler neither explains nor describes how the virus penetrated society. Still, the reader learns that the characters have not been talking to each for a long period, which makes them forget how their speech might sound. Communication difficulties result in increased regular fights and wearing firearms for protection. The offered theme reveals the worth of language in human life and proves the author’s professionalism in delivering urgent topics in a compressed context.
Secondly, the choice of characters and the setting show how people develop in a utopian society. There are several critical figures in the story, but most observe each other with “at least as much curiosity as fear” (Butler, 2014, p. 12). Despite their disabilities, men and women must continue living and adapting to new conditions. The author irradicates gender and racial inequality in society and underlines the individual’s ability to control a situation. In the bus, Rye demonstrates her high-level prudence; Obsidian, the bus driver, searches for justice and understanding, and children cannot deal with their emotions. The bus becomes a meaningful setting for the characters to protect themselves and keep living. The combination of settings and characters strengthens the author’s message about the distribution of roles and responsibilities.
Finally, Butler never loses hope to change a sorrowful and depressive tone into something positive, making her style and mood attractive to the reader. In the end, Rye offers the children support: “It’s all right for you to talk to me” (Butler, 2014, p. 12). People get used to living with the idea that they cannot use their language because of biological changes. The author uses inevitable disease that provokes depression and sorrow. She rejects the inevitability of a negative mood and adds the possibility of a better future. The story’s tone proves that human strength address inborn qualities and readiness to resist the negative environment.
The major question posed in the chosen short story, “Speech Sounds,” is how to live in a dystopia where people cannot use verbal language for communication. Butler introduces a powerful explanation of the damage to interpersonal relationships and life quality decrease. The author chooses a simple but clear plot, several strongly developed characters, and a restricted writing tone to answer the offered question. She provokes a better understanding of communication worth through the relationships between Rye and the other characters on the bus. The story shows how the depressive and unconfident mood disappears, giving way to a new beginning full of trust and hope.
Reference
Butler, O. E. (2014). Speech sounds. Web.
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