∞ = Δ (God is Change): Deconstructing/Reconstructing Disability in Octavia Butler's Afro-Futurisms

Abstract

Octavia Butler’s Parable of the Sower is a piece in which the affordances of the Afro-futuristic genre grants disabled and minority identities the ability to be imagined anew. This is especially pertinent when considering that black disability is central to Butler’s novel, as evidenced by the protagonist’s disabled status. This protagonist, in creating “Earthseed,” a religious following in Post-Apocalyptic America, integrates the metaphysical qualities of her disability within the very framework of society itself. The infusion of disability awareness and social construction is mirrored in disability and crip discourses. Octavia Butler’s Parable of the Sower is thus a novel that centers black women’s disability and highlights its potential for success within developing social build and progression.