2023-05-15

Last updated Aug 15, 2023

#BIO21i

Discuss evolution and evolutionary principle using any three (3) science fiction texts from the syllabus to support your discussion. Discuss the different ways in which the three texts display and hyperbolize different aspects of evolution, as well as what they have in common. Talk about how your chosen texts use their nova use evolution to communicate and explore their themes and ideas.

Feel free to use additional research to enhance your analysis, but it’s not strictly necessary. Please cite your sources (any citation method is fine, but be consistent).

• Evolution: the change in heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations.
  • Module 1
    • Framework for science fiction
    • Principles
      • Cards/Red Queen Hypothesis
      • Cards/Evolutionary Arms Race
    • The Worldview of Science Fiction?
    • Dragons can be good models for understanding the basic concepts of evolutionary biology.
  • Module 2
    • Evolution explains biodiversity
      • Speciation
      • Niche
      • Competitive Exclusion Principle
    • We make sense of species and their evolutionary relationships through classification
      • The other-ness of aliens can be treated as taxonomic cognitive estrangement (Cognition and Estrangement)
    • Other principles (seen in texts)
      • Eusociality
      • Assimilation
      • Fermi Paradox
  • Module 3
    • Speculative evolution
      • Speculative ==human== evolution…“human” term is loaded with social and biological connotations
    • Origin hypotheses
      • Directed panspermia
      • Primordial soup
      • Iron-sulfur world
    • Central Dogma of molecular biology: protein make-up determines what we are
    • Evolution: gradual genetic change at the population level
      • Change
        • accounted for by mutations
      • Gradual
        • accumultation of small, incremental changes
      • Population, not individual level
        • changes in frequences of alleles
    • Natural selection is a mechanism for evolution
      • Based on competition for resources and the consistent differences in the fitness of individuals in an environment
      • Fitness: the ability of an organism to reproduce and pass on its genes to the next generation.
      • Adaptations: traits that raise fitness
    • Human evolution and speciation
      • Evolutionary pressures still apply to us, even if we have more agency compared to other species
      • evolution can happen without speciation
      • remember: Speciation requires reproductive isolation and adaptations
    • Cards/Transhumanism
  • Module 4
    • Sex, gender, and reproduction
      • One’s reproductive biology is a determinant of one’s identity and social role
      • Parthogenesis
      • Sci-fi can defamiliarize these oconcepts to present alternative definitions for “normal”
    • Parasites, Pathogens, Body Horror
      • estranged, hyperbolized versions of abnormality
    • Sci-fi Sex
      • Sexual selection: important evolutionary force that shapes organisms
        • main reason behind sexual dimorphism: condition wherein two sexes are anatomically different
    • our experience and language not universal and cannot be expected to be universal.
    • Disease and Parasitism
      • diseases: state
      • parasitism: relationship
  • Module 5
    • Biotechnology
    • Utopia and Anti-utopia
    • Alienation
  • Module 6
    • Ecology and evolution: all about interconnectedness
    • Political ecology
    • Remediation
  • Modules I’m covering:
    • Origins of Life and Species
    • Biology and Society
    • Ecology and Worldbuilding
• Texts
  • The Time Machine
    • concerns itself with our ==future==: the question of where we’re going.
    • Nova:
      • time machine
      • the fantastic time periods which our protagonist visits
      • the Eloi and the Morlocks.
    • How it displays + hyperbolizes evolution:
      • physical characteristics
      • intelligence (Cognition)
      • class struggle still remains, hyperbolized as species war (Competitive Exclusion Principle?)
    • How it uses evolution to explore its themes:
      • class struggle/conflict or dialetic materialism -> Class-based human speciation
      • History is dialectic, driven by class struggle towards the ultimate end of a classless society.
  • Sense8
    • concerns itself with a fictional subspecies of humanity that might be living alongside us in the ==present==
    • Nova:
      • existence of a superpowered human subspecies, Homo sensorium, that lives alongside and largely hidden from humanity
      • Sense8 limits and nuances its specific version of an otherwise-well-worn novum in a really interesting way, making the sensate power set and narrative a very specific one: these aren’t mind readers, coercives, or brainwashers, just otherwise-normal people capable of communicating with each other and borrowing skills from each other.
      • the sensate mindlink itself
        • If the novum of the sensate superpower uses telepathy and mind-linking as the signifier, what exactly is being signified? What concept or capability is being heightened and hyperbolized to create the sensate experience? (Being interconnected?)
    • Themes:
      • Sense8 then is a wonderful text for examining identity, power, and the intersections of the two, the ways in which the site of our suffering can also be what saves us–whether it’s how we look, who we love, or what superpowers we wield–and how even superhuman abilities can be fertile ground for discourse and critical exploration.
    • How it displays + hyperbolizes evolution:
      • whispers doesn’t want the “next step” in evolution to happen…dark and fascist ideologies? Governments across the world all have secrets that they want to protect, so they’re threatened by the very existence of sensates and their powers.
    • How it uses evolution to explore its themes:
      • explores the relationship between empathy and evolution in the human race ( Source)
        • empathy was the natural result of our continued evolution. That the more we develop, the more we are required to come into contact with larger circles of people, giving us the ability to empathize outside of our smaller circles. The concept of sensate ability widens those circles to a global scale.
        • The revolution must be empathetic because the revolution is empathy. If we refuse to lose sight of that, we will truly evolve beyond our wildest dreams. Sense8 believes that we can.
      • connectivity and evolution ( Source)
        • All of these people are separated by so much—language, nationality, sexuality, employment, beliefs, relationships, gender, class—and yet, their ability to connect eventually proves that there is very little separating them at all. They’ve all experienced suffering, betrayal, joy, fear, and love. Even when they are divided by context, they are united by trials of living, by people that they care for, by memories they try to bury.
      • the Sensates themselves are ‘no longer just you’, ( Source)
      • “The engine of evolution is variation. I’d imagine to become something more than what evolution would define as yourself, you’d need something different than yourself”.
      • The Neurological Reality of the ‘Sense8’ Sensates
        • What I found fascinating about the show was that the power of a sensate comes from the ==actual connection between other people, rather than an acquired superpower or an individual, inborn talent.== It’s definitely science fiction, but there have been several neurological studies on the importance of empathy to humanity, the speed of thought, and how this kind of connection might even have place in future technology. How, like sensates, can and do our minds connect with other people’s minds?
        • One character calls sensates ==a type of mutant, the next step in human evolution,== because of a subtle but definite change in their brains by which they connect with these other sensates.
        • But Sense8 is strongest when it looks at how government and power structures can, and do, imprison people for neurological differences.
        • human minds are literally interdependent with one another.
  • X-Men (House of X or Planet-Size X-Men)
    • Biotechnological science fiction presupposes, then, that the power of genetics and biology can shape the future of our species.
    • Nova:
      • Homo superior: human [sub]species born with special powers, often feared and hated.
        • “next step of evolution”
      • Mutant powers
      • Krakoa (organic technology, used to create a nation)
      • Planet Arrakis (superpowered terraforming)
    • How it displays + hyperbolizes evolution:
      • it wasn’t the Sentinels that defeated mutants. Ironically, it was Time. The Librarian’s line of thinking here is this: Evolution, at least in the classic, biological sense, stopped applying to humans; thanks to humanity building and then relying on other systems – i.e., technology – evolution was rendered obsolete.
      • Humanity, after all, is the only species that truly changes its environment around its needs, rather than any longer adapting to that environment. (ability that is exacerbated in sci-fi)
      • the “next step in evolution” is pointless if humanity has bypassed it
    • How it uses evolution to explore its themes:
      • A utopia using power and control to fight oppression and death, in an uncontrollable universe
      • gifts v.s. weapons
        • E.G. flowers for helping countries or gaining political leverage
      • mutants shouldn’t need to be heroes to be accepted. The marginalized should not need to be likeable to be seen as human.
  • What these all have in common:
    • All of their nova involve speculative human evolution…
      • Speciation for both sense8 and time machine? not x-men
    • All of these texts can be explored through Marxist criticism
      • Mutant metaphor: the trope of people born with extraordinary powers being used as a metaphor for real-world conditions of marginalization and oppression.
        • Mutation as race, SOGIE, disability, privilege, power, community
        • there is a class enemy: a man who wants to control everyone with their gifts.
        • Synthesis can mean coexistence, but it can also mean victory (and thus defeat) or even replacement (and thus extinction).
        • The fear of evolution is ultimately the fear of change, the fear of our children, and the fear of obsolescence.
      • ^ time machines touches on these conditions too…
  • X-Men v.s. Sense8
    • power comes from inborn/innate ability (natural gifts or built-in weapons) v.s. actual connection
    • what saves the world: violence + control v.s. love + acceptance
      • Sense8 suggests that the best way to heal the world isn’t to beat any one bad guy, any one awful ideology, but, rather, to find better ways to care for each other, to love each other, and, yes, to make each other feel really good.
      • Meanwhile, X-Men…gives up? on Earth, and creates their own world instead
      • X-Men mutants are not innately a new species, just another variant of Homo sapiens. They cannot become a new species (or more than one) unless geophysical or other circumstances create an irrevocable barrier to their breeding with the rest of humanity. ==Tolerance of one another’s differences== could be enough to prevent that outcome.
        • Sense8 tolerates difference
        • X-Men literally create their own barriers
      • In building yet another mutant island community, Xavier is creating a society that insists that the most important thing about everyone there is the fact that they’re a mutant. It’s a perfectly understandable view for a persecuted group but whether it’s a healthy end point is another matter entirely.
    • same novum (mutation) tackled in “a spectrum… running from the ideal extreme of exact recreation of the author’s empirical environment (Sense8) to exclusive interest in [the novum]. (X-Men)”
    • told on the level of society v.s. level of individuals
      • the very marginalisation of individual characters is a big part of the point (x-men)
  • Conclusion
    • evolution is the signifier
    • human experience is the signified

1. Introduction
   1. Hook: evolution in sci-fi
      1. As a genre rooted in possibility, science fiction is driven forward by the belief that norms are changeable.
      2. And this applies to people the most; one of the premises Gunn’s worldview of science fiction is built on is that humanity is adaptable.
      3. In fact, it could be argued that adaptation is our responsibility. “Certainly the good old days…can be appreciated, but science fiction, in its forward-thinking attitude, will recognize that the good old days were never really that good and that change is necessary for growth of the species.”
   2. What better way to critique human norms then through speculative human evolution?
      1. Many science fiction texts like to ponder on hypothetical pasts, (Where do we come from?), presents (Who else is living with us?), and futures (What will happen to us?).
      2. But all of these speculations are grounded in our reality; what these texts are really questioning is who we already are as humans.
   3. The best example of this is the mutant metaphor, wherein people born with extraordinary powers are utilized to signify real-world conditions of marginalization and oppression.
   4. So in this essay, I will be exploring how evolution serves as a framework for science fiction through two examples of mutants: The X-Men series’ Homo superior and Sense8’s Homo sensorium.
2. Homo superior
   1. The X-Men’s version of mutantdom
      1. The X-Men “the next step in evolution”
      2. Nova: superpowers
   2. How does the series display and hyperbolize evolution? (signifier)
      1. HOXPOX: organic technology
         1. The Five: resurection protocols… they’re cheating death
         2. language and biology?
      2. Planet-Size X-Men: superpowered terraforming
         1. they’re cheating nature “we can do this in a day”
   3. How does the series use evolution to explore its themes? (signified)
      1. HOXPOX
         1. Mutants vs humans-machines
            1. Red Queen Hypothesis
            2. Evolutionary Arms Race
            3. Cards/Transhumanism
      2. Planet-Size X-Men
3. Homo sensorium
   1. Sense8’s version of mutantdom
   2. How does the series display and hyperbolize evolution? (signifier)
      1. Umwelt and Cognition: shared experience
   3. How does the series use evolution to explore its themes? (signified)
      1. BPO’s purpose and the Competitive Exclusion Principle
4. Comparison
   1. While the X-Men series and Sense8 both exemplify the mutant metaphor, they take nearly opposing approaches.
   2. First, their portrayal of the mutation novum is on opposite sides of the spectrum. Sense8’s setting can be seen as an precise recreation of the author’s [a.k.a. the Wachowskis] own environment; sensates can easily pass as normal humans because of the subtle nature of their abilities. Meanwhile, the X-Men universe has an exclusive interest in [mutants]; flashy abilities not only put mutants in the spotlight, but also empower them to literally make space for themselves (by creating a new country and planet).
   3. Next, the powers gained from mutantdom differ in terms of mechanics. The X-Men series takes an individualist orientation; power is an inborn talent, and some mutants are born more powerful than others, as seen with Omega-level mutants. Meanwhile, Sense8 has a collectivist lens; instead of an acquired superpower, the power of a sensate comes from actual connection between other people.
      2. semiotically rich? (or talk about this in their own paragraphs) 1. gifts v..s. weapons 2. empathy?
   4. Finally, in their messaging, they propose contrasting pathways towards a better world for the marginalized.
      1. division v.s. connection/integration?
      2. Given how the sensate mindlink signifies empathy, Sense8 believes that connection is the way to go: “…the best way to heal the world isn’t to beat any one bad guy…[or]any one awful ideology, but, rather, to find better ways to care for each other…[and] to love each other.” Hence, the finale was the perfect ending to the series; what better way to celebrate an interconnected and inclusive world than an orgy, where people of differing races, genders, sexualities, etc. got to enjoy themselves together?
      3. However, Krakoan era X-Men would see this perspective as naive. It questions why the marginalized need to be good in order to assert their humanity, and argues that there is no need for them to. Charles Xavier advocated for goodness, and that got him nothing but doomed timelines. So instead of trying to integrate with the rest of the world, the X-Men give up and create their own, exclusive to mutants only.
      4. Mutants are not new species. but its seems like the x-men want to become their own.
         1. With this chosen path, it could be said that mutants are trying to become their own species. Contrary to popular belief, mutants are not a distinct species; in order to be considered as one, they would have to be reproductively isolated from the rest of humanity, which would require geophysical barriers. By creating their own country and planet, the X-Men could be considered moving towards speciation.
      5. Overall: in a diversified world, humans make sense of themselves and others through classification. Both texts explored this need for groups to develop their own identities, albeit in conflicting ways. Sense8 advocates for our shared humanity in spite of our biodiversity (“We are still human”) while the X-Men series pushes an us-versus-them mentality (“We are more than human”).
5. Conclusion
   1. a story about where you think we’re going is really a statement about where you think we are now, and about our response to that. If you believe we will become better people in the future, that’s also a belief that in the present, we can.
   2. but the question is…how will we get there?
   3. If science fiction stories are really statements about our reality, then what do these series say about us?

• https://www.proquest.com/openview/0037939df3181bd1f1399860ed428ef2/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=1820923