Human Nature: Predatory?

Before I forget I want to mention a word that Mitchell uses in most of the different sections we read: Hydra. Definitions (Encarta Dictionary)  1. Largest constellation: a constellation near the celestial equator

                                            2. many-headed monster: in Greek mythology, a monster that had nine heads and was killed by Heracles. When one head was cut off, another grew instantly in its place

                                         3. a freshwater organism: a freshwater polyp with a cylindrical body at one end and a mouth surrounded by tentacles at the other.

In the novel Hydra was the name of the nuclear reactor plant in L Rey, it was the name of the womb tanks in Sonmi, he described the Dermot Hoggins’ brothers  as the “Hoggins Hyrda” in Cavendish , on the very last page of the book (Mitchell’s diatribe) human nature is metaphorically referred to as “the many-headed hydra”. In each section Mitchell shows a world that is predatory. He takes us through history and beyond (into the future) giving us examples of a predatory nature of humanity.  Not everyone is a predator of course, there has to be the prey. Mitchell does include people who represent a glimmer of hope: Louisa Rey, her father, Meronym, Zachry, Sixsmith, Autua, Napier.

If human nature is “the many- headed hydra” whose heads will grow back if one is cut off it then it can’t be a good thing if Mitchell suggests that human nature is inherently predatory. Does the hydra only have 9 heads and can it be killed eventually? Will human nature and its “selfishness” ultimately end in “extinction” (508)?

 I think Mitchell is trying to tell us that it is up to us to take what he has given us in this novel as an outline of what has happened, is happening and quite possibly could happen if we aren’t careful of the predatory nature that consumes some people, who unfortunately and not coincidentally find themselves in positions of power, colonizers, corporations, Hitler, you know what I am talking about.

We need to be aware of those in power and how they dictate and controls us. We need to question the apparatus, the institutions that are in place.

And Away We Go…

•  The topic for my final paper: I will be assessing Vidal’s commentary on the connections between sex and politics by looking specifically at the dominant ideas of its particular historical moment, 1968. Sexuality/Politics/Power/Ideology.
• My primary text is Gore Vidals’ Myra Breckinridge.
• Plan of attack: I will revisit Douglas Eisner’s piece on Myra that we read in class. I have started to look at the predominant ideas about sex at this time. I found the following secondary sources on the Kinsey Reports:

An Experimental Study of Attitudes Towards Male Sex Behavior with Reference to Kinsey Findings Author(s): Clifford Kirkpatrick, Sheldon Stryker, Philip Buell Source: American Sociological Review, Vol. 17, No. 5 (Oct., 1952), pp. 580-587

Published Reactions to the Kinsey Report Author(s): Erdman Palmore Source: Social Forces, Vol. 31, No. 2 (Dec., 1952), pp. 165-172

• I will also look into research on Masters and Johnson who pioneered research into the nature of human sexual response and the diagnosis and treatment of sexual disorders and dysfunctions from 1957 until the 1990s. I found an interesting tidbit:

From 1968 to 1977, the Masters and Johnson Institute ran a program to convert or revert homosexuals to heterosexuality. This program reported a 71.6% success rate over a six-year treatment period. At the time of their earlier work, homosexuality was considered a psychological disorder by the American Psychiatric Association^{. (WIKI)}

How insane is that????? Holy crap!!!!This is going to be an exciting ride…

• I have already looked at Kate Millet’s Sexual Politics: 1968. This piece looks promising. I will also look at commentary by others on Millet’s to engage in the conversation regarding sex culturally at the time.
• Vidal was deeply invested in the politics of the time, so I need to delve into research on Vidal and his politics. I will look at his essays. What was Vidal concerned about while writing Myra? What kind of historical/cultural phenomena does he talk about? I need to articulate the ways in which Myra is a commentary on the emerging connections between Sexuality and Politics that are occurring at the same time culturally.
• Kim suggested that I look at Todd Gitlin’s The Sixties: Years of Hope, Days of Rage (1987) for an overview of the time period.
• I also need to look at secondary research on Myra.
• Kim also suggested that I look at Foucault’s History of Sexuality, Vol. I. He should be able to provide a model to analyze what I see in the novel and its surrounding influences.
• I may use Terry Eagleton to set up the idea that the novel is a part of its time, how this novel works, and what it can do. My focus is on how this novel works.

Let the games begin. Also, I will probably be going back to SUNY’s library after our field trip. It will be on a weekend. I live near ST. Rose & have a car, so if anyone is interested in carpooling to go & do some research, lemme know….