"The Slows" by Gail Hareven

[Mrs. Terenzi]

This story is probably going to throw you for a loop.  Please refrain from looking up analyses of it on the internet.  If you have already done so, be aware that I have also read what is out there and can tell you that it is written by amateurs and that the power of your minds together can come up with far better ideas.

 

Write your first paragraph about the narrator: his POV, reliability, significance-- whatever you want.  (Like my use of the colon and dash there?)  Write a second paragraph about anything that strikes you; it could be the writing style, a confusing element, etc.  (...and semi-colon?) 

 

Do ask questions of your classmates if you have any.  And do respond to the questions of others if you can.

[ayeenghi]

The narrator is trusted by many Slows, so it's no wonder why this savage woman chose to talk to him instead of all the other scientists. He didn't even "consider reaching for the button to call the guards." Instead, he was very nice to her; he asked her if she wanted anything to drink multiple times & listened to everything she said. I felt like he was looking through her though. He thought she "would definitely have been considered pretty." Why is that even important or relevant to what she came there for? After trying to convince her that going through an accelerated growth won't "shorten this offspring's life," he didn't really take her seriously because he knew her baby was going to be taken away. But still, he was nice to her until he touched her shoulder. She then "recoiled, raised her head, and bared her teeth," assuming that all he had were sexual intentions with her. This was when he pressed the button to call the guards and had the baby taken away. When she screamed at him, he suddenly became angry because she looked at him as a pig. I feel like he had her baby taken away to get back at her for screaming at him. However, even if she didn't do that, I don't think he would've told her she only had a few days left with her baby anyway.
What I liked about his writing was that he used a lot of imagery. When he described savage women breast-feeding, he said "we watched the ravenous face of the larva and the swollen organ thrust into its wet mouth." It did sound pretty gross. That leads to my question: are the Slows deformed looking? He said they had "swollen protrusions on their chests" and swelled up bodies.

[Walid_94]

The narrator at the beginning of the short story tells us that words destroyed his future--"I stood there, with a towel wrapped around my waist, reading the words that destroyed my future." I connected this to the phrase "The pen is mightier than the sword," it didn't take a person to ruin his life completely, words did. Moreover, I agree with Ngni that the Narrator is trusted by the slows--or at least by the "savage woman." Although he knew the truth about the faith of the slows, he didn't want to break it to the savage woman. The narrator grew to care for the savage woman and the larva, which she was holding. In the beginning, he offered to give her coffee which has a mild and sour taste to it, which shows us their relationship is a mild one from the start. However, as soon as they start connecting, he offers to give her water which cleansed the mild taste and made their relationship stronger. Water is a sign a purity, by giving her water he had fully welcomed her . He felt bad for her throughout the whole short story; he tried to compromise with the savage woman throughout the story as she shunned everything he says. He also makes promises he knows he can't keep, "I promise you that no harm will come to the children." He wants her to feel safe as if he is waiting for the right moment to press the button like he does in the end. Although they formed a sort of connection, I feel like the narrator came in the camp with a plan and already knew of the savage woman--but then again, I could be completely wrong. 

He makes a distinction between the eyes of the savage woman and the larva, "Indeed, this dark eyed woman seemed confused," and "The human larva turned its head and gaze toward the savage woman. She had pretty eyes." The savage woman had dark eyes, which symbolize a dark emotion as if she has been hurt emotionally throughout most of her life; however, the larva had eyes that in a way symbolized a new hope. It was interesting that when the savage woman said " Why do you hate us?", he replied with "'Hate?' I said to her. 'Hate is a strong word." He didn't deny the hate she said he had towards them; he only manipulated her question. It caught my attention when when the savage woman said "Do you mean that you won't take them?," the narrator said afterwords "the savage princess asked in a soft, strange voice." He goes from calling her a savage woman to a savage princess. Also, just like Nghi, I also saw that the author used imagery, especially when the larva started making noises as if it sensed something "The screeches stunned me." The narrator makes the savage woman at one point sound sinister which gets to me because I thought they were connecting "The savage woman twisted her jaw to the side," as she says "You think we're stupid?" He makes her look and sound possessed and not normal. 

I have many questions on this short story. Do you guys think that the camp te narrator talks about is actually a science lab? Why does the woman only connect with the narrator and no one else? Did the woman sense that their end was approaching?

[BadrKis]

 

The narrator in “The Slows” is very attracted to the slows and through his interaction with them he enables himself to have a greater understanding of the slows. The slows are needed on society as his research on them is very vital to all of society. His 15 years to research dedicated to the slows is all down the drain and he feels that nobody knows the value of the slows in society, as well as their vital role in creating advancements for society. From the narrator’s interaction with the slows it also shows that they were a big part of his life and the closing of the reserve would have him doing something he didn’t want to do, as well as forget about all his experience and research with the slows.     

 

The author of the story incorporates many close details and Imagery to explain things such as setting and characterization. Little background additions in a scene enable imagination to take charge and generate a larger understanding of the setting and story. The interaction and reason for actions are also explained with the help of close detail and Imagery.    

[Desiree Vargas]

    The narrator of, "The Slows" seems to be a sincerly caring person. According to the savage woman, the narrator was not like the policemen but he was nicer and more understanding. The narrator listens to what the slow woman had to say and he politely offers her coffee and water to make her at ease and comfortable. Although he is a nice man, he is not a truthful one because he would not tell the woman that regardless of his efforts the baby or larva would still be taken away. He also does not tell her how long the slows have left at the preserves. The narrators point of view seems to be that he is in favor or keeping the preserves ope because it is destroying his future and he is not finished with his research. He is not a reliable person because he tells the savage woman that the babies are safe but then he leaves out, "...sooner or later, no matter where she hid, it would be taken." (3) The narrators significance to the slows seems to be important. He is a scientist that is doing research on the slows and plays a big role in the preserves. Throughout the whole conversation with the savage woman, the narrator remains calm and does not call for the security gaurds because he does not wish anything bad to happen to this woman and her larva, but towards the end when the woman became hostile, the narrator decided it was time to remove her from his office.

    While reading this short story, there is a lot of confusion about what is really going on and what these "slow" people really are. Imagery seemed to stick out in this short story a lot and I enjoyed the way the author gave detailed descriptions to help the reader picture what was really going on. I got a good sense of what these people and larvea actually look like, but i am not sure if the picture inmy head matches up with the authors. The way the narrator describes some of the characteristics of the slow people and the larva really confuses me because I cannot really figure out what the, "...swollen protrusions on their chests and general swelling of their bodies...their tendency to twist their faces wildly..." (2) really means or what all of that really is. The way the narrator described the motherly love the slow women give their larvea stuck out to me because it made me question whether this was a negative thing or a positive thing. 

 

My only questions are whether the preserves are some type of experimental groth and developement of a different species of humans or a different way of producing and raising offsprings and are these slow people deformed in some way that they do not look normal or that they can be distinguished from humans?  

     

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[Desiree Vargas]

I think that the preserves are not science labs, but maybe like a reservation of some sort where scientists are researching these slow people and how they raise their offspring. It deffinately does have something to do with science related material though. I think that the woman only connects with the narrator because he is being nice and trying to relate to her while other people like the policemen and security guards are cruel and do not care much for what the slows have to say.

From: Walid_94 <walid...@hotmail.com>
To: apes-2...@googlegroups.com

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[Katya Perez]

I think that the narrator in the story is definitely a researcher for some kind of organization, but we've already established this fact since he mentioned his involvement and efforts put into his researched. I agree with everyone else that the narrator has a pretty good relationship with the slows due to his research projects, but I also agree with Desiree that he can't be trusted since he hides the truth from the Slow woman that the closing of the Preserves has already started. Also, while I think that the narrator is a man, I originally thought he was a female because of the way that he talks about his own children in such a passionate way that reminded me of how a female would talk about her children. It's also clear that while the narrator has some desire to help the Slows from being exploited by missionaries and the government through the forced treatment of A.O.G. on their babies, he also finds them disgusting and has little tolerance for their culture and way of life. That is evident through the commentary that the narrator give throughout the story on his actual thoughts while having the confrontation with the Slow woman.

I think that the meaning of the story is very interesting. I think that the author wants to warn readers on the dangerous path that technology and genetic engineering. The narrator mentions that the setting is on a different planet, and credits 3 people, two of whom are named German and Yaddo (I can't remember the 3rd one), with setting up these new "colonies" and developing the Accelerated Growth engineering. I also think that the Slow woman's species is that of the man kind that WE are familiar with, while the narrator's species is a more evolved and dominating version of us. So this story could also have a meaning that human beings now need to alter our attitudes towards species that we consider below us, since we could end up in their position sooner than we expected.

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[kevins19957]

I have to agree with most of you guys. The narrator seems to be very compassionate about the women whom he is talking to. He is described as some sort of scientist who has power over this women and her "people". She states " if we knew how much time was left for us." Therefore the narrator has the power to control her people, but even though this piece is FICTION i still believe the people are human and not necessarily monsters, more along the lines of uncivilized, reckless and salvage. Anyway, we can tell the narrator is compassionate about the women because it is stated numerous times that he can just press the button on his desk and have the women removed (not until the end), but rather tries to empathize and understand her situation. The narrator seems to be in a more upper class or at least higher importance in this article, because no where does it mention his peoples time left. Instead the story is mainly focused on the womens people which suggests that the narrator is conveying a transition of settings which include the premature larvae.

Realizing that this story was fiction, I thought a little more extreme about it. I think this story takes place more in the future because the idea of an "accelerated offspring gowth" comes up a few times in the context of the narrator wanting to protect and maybe take the larvae creature through the proccess. We can telll the narrator might want to take the baby along with him into a new "modern", perhaps setting because he cares so much for it and even questions the womens love for it. " Don't you feel sorry for it?" At the end he does press the button to have the women removed, but I do not think it would have mattered anyways because like I previously mentioned, the women knew her days were counted.

Katya, I though it was a man because usualy males like to be in power and in control. Having that button to his disposal allowes him for easy acceess to authority on his command which suggests and alpha type personality and again, made me think it was male. Besides that, I did not think much of it, but you are right, he does also show immense compassion and understanding which could suggest shes a women.

On Wednesday, September 5, 2012 2:31:39 PM UTC-4, Mrs. Terenzi wrote:

[maggylovesjellyfish]

The narrator of the story is revealed in three definite ways: the narrator is a male (refer to the towel wrapped around his waist), he has invested 15 years of his time researching the Slows, and though he thinks the research is valuable he still does not have many explanations about the Slows and their culture. The Slows do not generally trust humans due to mistreatment and unfulfilled promises, and it is evident that the Slow female in the story does not even fully trust the narrator. She regards him as being more trustworthy than most other humans, but she also "recoiled, raised her head, and bared her teeth" (5) at him. She wants to be able to trust him, but more than anything she wants answers. To sway his decision, she wears "black and green makeup in [his] honor" (3). The black and green color scheme may suggest military involvement. The narrator very well may be a researcher affiliated with the military, attempting to contain the Slows and protect the human race. This is further supported by how the Slows are guarded in their camps and live approximately 30 minutes away by plane. The narrator's knowledge of A.O.G. also suggests that he is aware of what most ordinary human beings may not be, where the secrecy element of the military would appear. Though the narrator expresses an interest in the Slows and regards the woman as a "savage princess" (3) and "considered [her] pretty" (2), he still lacks genuine sympathy and compassion. He listens to her plea, and knowing the truth, attempts to answer sternly but dishonestly. Rather than compassionate, he is respectful. Once the Savage woman physically shows her own distrust and he experiences feelings of "defilement" (5), he no longer gives her thought. He saw how much she was preoccupied with her offspring and admitted to finding the Slows to be very possessive of them, he pushes the button that would tear the Slow woman and her offspring apart and leaves his office before anything happens.

 

The narrator makes it clear that the Slows are indeed deformed, associated with an infection, and thought of as
"a gangrene that could spread and rot the entire body of humankind" (3). He describes the Slow woman as "twist[ing] her face and mak[ing] it ugly" (3), having "swollen protrusions on [her] chest" (2), and having "general[ly sowllen] bodies" (2). Despite all of this, he still describes her in a human way. Her considers her pretty, she "had pretty eyes" (3), and a "black curtain of hair" (5). He attempts to see her in a more human way instead of treating her harshly and rejecting her as most of humankind has. He is uncomfortable with his relationship to the Slows and still makes distinctions between them and humans in his speech by using our's and us to distinguish the two. The Slow woman does the same by using we're and us as well. They attempt to create a relationship of understanding in this dialogue but they are both uncertain on how to handle it.

 

[maggylovesjellyfish]

The Slows are definitely deformed and have a very different appearance from humankind. He describes their faces as being "twist[ed] wildly" (2) and as you mentioned, their bodies are swollen  and they have swollen protrusions. They are also refered to as savages and perhaps a result of an infection.

[kev55guevara]

I agree with all of you that the narrator cares (to some degree) about the Slows. He seems to care more about his research than he does about the savage woman and her larva because he says "I couldn't avoid thinking about myself" after learning that he will not be able to finish his fifteen years of research. I think that the narrator believes that the Slows are inferior to other people because he constantly mentions that the Slows have a "culture" that not too many people can deal with or understand. Through years of research the narrator and the Slows seem to have formed a bond of trust because the narrator is one of the few people who is polite to the savage woman, and the savage woman only gets really hostile towards the end of the story. 

The thing that confuses me the most about this story is the setting. When does this story take place? It might take place in the future like Kevin said, but i do not think that because there is just no solid evidence that says it takes place in the future. Another thing is what kind of camp does the story take place in. It could be a science camp, but are the other people at the camp (including the Slows) there voluntarily or against there will. The narrator mentions that there were attacks on other camps so it makes me think of the camp as like a prison. The camp also kind of reminds me of a concentration camp because Nazis would perform medical experiments on Jews. Just like the narrator was doing to the Slows.

On Wednesday, September 5, 2012 2:31:39 PM UTC-4, Mrs. Terenzi wrote:

[maggylovesjellyfish]

Walid, I believe the camps are military controlled bases. Refer to my comments about the narrator.

[katya.perez74]

I don't think that the Slows are actually deformed. I think that the narrator just has a negative perspective towards the Slows, and that makes him believe that they are ugly and deformed. I believe that the Slows look like humans like us, while the narrator's species probably looks different from them.

[katya.perez74]

"Rather than compassionate, he is respectful." That is the perfect way of describing the author, I think.

[katya.perez74]

I think that the setting is on another planet, and probably in the future, considering that in 2009 when this piece was first published, there was no technology that made this possible. The narrator also refers to those three men that I mentioned in my analysis and discusses how they developed the colonies on the planet Gamma. Hope that gives you some clarity!