| Xen: Ancient English Edition by D. J. Solomon |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Buried in the mists of time is the ancient history of Homo sapiens, the species that
currently dominates the earth. Within this history are the tragic and gruesome stories of
bloodletting and slaughter that pepper the pages of dusty history books reclining unread
and forgotten in backpacks and on shelves. From out of the mist come the heavy
stomping feet as man marches forth to kill his fellow man. And although these events of
the past are numerous, it is rare to ever read of a woman stepping out of the
background to become something other than a piece of property. Man has always
dominated. D.J. Solomon tears apart this ancient concept of male superiority in his book
Xen: Ancient English Edition. With several references to the bloody past, the utopian
future is revealed, and it is a future dominated by the feminine.
The majority of the book is written in second person, a style that forces the reader to
become the character. The reader experiences all of the character's emotions and
celebrates when the character triumphs, or mourns when the character fails. Sometimes
the reader is forced to look at a conflict from both sides. The description of the battle for
Jerusalem is one such example. "Jerusalem falls to you. You celebrate your victory with
joyous praise and continue the slaughter" (pg. 80). But in every war, there is a loser.
"Jerusalem falls. You and your comrades, wives, children of all ages, mothers, fathers,
sisters, brothers, grandparents and all other relations are systematically slaughtered..."
(pg. 81). In this way the reader becomes a part of the action. Five of the ten books the
novel is divided into are written from the viewpoint of a woman. By writing in second
person, Solomon forces the reader to become that woman regardless of actual gender.
The reader feels the emotions of that woman; he or she suffers as her, rejoices as her,
succeeds and fails as her. The reader becomes a woman, and this is the overture for
the final transformation at the climax of the novel in which Homo sapiens, "man the wise,"
becomes "Femina persapiens" or "woman the wiser" (pg. 183).
The future utopian society portrayed in the book is ruled over by a woman, Minister
Esse. This is unusual because it is more common to find a moissonite crystal than to
have a woman at the reigns of a single country much less the entire planet. Women
have ruled in the past, but they have always been figureheads. Hatshepsut became
pharaoh during the eighteenth dynasty in proxy of her son, but she was held in check by
the all-male Egyptian military. Queen Elizabeth fought the overbearing machinations of
the all-male parliament recently come into power during the English shift from absolutism
to constitutionalism. The most influential country in the world today, the United States,
has never had a female president. While women are able to become politically involved,
they bow to machismo tradition in the area of ministration over a country. Minister Esse
demonstrates the positive traits a woman brings to state affairs. When the Peregrinians
arrive on Earth, she does not pull out the planet's largest guns out of fear and
xenophobia; rather, she talks with them and initiates a planetary broadcast in which
questions are answered and the story of the origin of the utopia is revealed. And when
she learns of the origins of her society, she calmly accepts it and states, "I propose that
all previous holidays commemorating War and heroes of those horrible interchanges of
Mankind be abolished. I propose that yesterday and today be marked as new days of
celebration, marking our introduction to the Consortium" (pg. 182). In the past, man
would have blasted the Peregrinians out of the sky, ruled and controlled by his fear of
the unknown. But the calmer, gentler nature of woman resolves the situation and inducts
Earth into a planetary consortium of star-travelers. At the same time, she destroys the
mysticism of war by taking away the holiday status of those days commemorating human
conflicts; violence is no longer idolized.
While the story told by the book spans the course of human history and ultimately
reveals the salvation of mankind, it also portrays the outcome of a cosmic bet. At the
very dawn of human history, when man was just beginning to crawl out of the mud and
make his epic climb to supreme domination of the planet, Wind and Water argued over
the fate of mankind. " ...I predict that Mankind will destroy himself..."Not a chance,' Water
shot back... `I'm willing to bet... that mankind will turn out just fine' " (pgs. 11, 12). While
feminine Water advocates for humanity, masculine Wind constantly brings to light all the
faults of mankind. That Wind has bet on the destruction of man is typical of the male
desire for calamity. Just as little boys are fascinated by the squashing of bugs or the
burying of an anthill, Wind is appraising every ruinous action that brings humanity closer
to annihilation. Many of the baleful actions of man that Wind thrusts in Water's face are
gruesome. "Your tongue could be bored through with a hot poker, allowing for it to then
be hooked or tied to your cheek after a hole is made there as well... I might have
daggers thrust into the soles of your feet or ears or have you shod like a horse...
Imagine your face and head after igniting a small bag of gunpowder in your mouth" (pg.
103). This graphic description of torture is all the more horrific because of the first to
second person viewpoints; the reader becomes the victim and suffers through the
gloating of the torturer. History also informs the reader that tortures such as this were at
one time very common and still are in parts of the world; had the reader been born in a
different era, the victim could very well be him or her. The contemplation of that idea is
nauseating. Water, however, is little perturbed by Wind's rant. She holds on to faith for
humanity and helps Pawkey Seneschal create the Plague that ultimately leads to the
evolution from humanity to "hufemity" (pg. 183). Water's cunning succeeds over Wind's
bluster, and femininity triumphs over masculinity.
Though the pages of history gush with a plethora of male exploits, the concepts of Xen:
Ancient English Edition revolve around the heroism of womankind. The reader is put into
the shoes of women through the use of the second person point of view. The reader
experiences the joys of motherhood, the aches of doing homework during adolescence,
and the responsibility of governing the planet. The fact that the minister of Earth is
female provides a political statement about the predominantly male government of today.
Minister Esse's capable handling of the situation when the Peregrinians arrive on Earth
attests the female capacity for handling new situations with flexibility and grace. Water's
ultimate triumph over Wind demonstrates the capability to use a logical thought process
to solve a problem. By assisting in the transformation of Homo sapiens to Femina
persapians, she was able to win the bet by using a loophole. One must wonder if
perhaps women have resembled Water all along in manipulating events. Perhaps they
have affected the course of history more than previously supposed. Perhaps the history
books should be rewritten with an emphasis on the women currently painted into the
background of history. Perhaps then the books would not recline dusty and unread in a
backpack or on a shelf, and perhaps then humanity would allow for more women in
leadership positions. And perhaps, just perhaps, the tragic and grisly mistakes of the
past would not be revisited in the future.
| Nicole Olson Anoka High School Anoka, MN "Feminine Charms" |
| © Copyright 2004-2008 by Avar Press. All rights reserved. Copyright of the individual essays belongs to the respective writer and may not be reproduced in any fashion without express written permission from each author. Interested parties may contact the author via their high school or by sending correspondence to Avar Press. |
| First Place $500.00 Scholarship 2007 |
