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Book 2, Chapter 12
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Dawn, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Humanity, Evolution, and Genetics
Motherhood and Leadership
Consent and Autonomy
Sexuality and Gender
Summary
Analysis
Lilith is in a room a little larger than a football field. There are bathrooms, food, and about 80 sleeping humans in the room, all under 50 and healthy. Nikanj set her up in the room, which mimics the light cycles of day and night. Lilith has dossiers about all the people and is trying to be strategic about which ones she’ll eventually choose to Awaken—she has to pick at least 40 of them. She is afraid, both for herself and for the other humans, who will become trading partners for the Oankali. Still, with the Oankali totally in control of the ship, Lilith figures the only hope for herself and the others is on Earth.
Each book of the novel tells a complete story, with the break in books marking a new phase of Lilith’s life. Now, after spending a lot of time learning about Oankali culture, Lilith is again sent off on her own, albeit with the Oankali watching her progress silently. The number 40 appears several times in the Bible and continues with the religious imagery that has been running throughout the story. Here, it emphasizes how, while Lilith is a leader and a parent to the humans she Awakens, she will also become something like a religious figure, essentially raising them from a death-like state of suspended animation.
Themes
Lilith looks at a dossier and considers a Hungarian-American man named Victor Dominic. She likes him and thinks he seems clever based on his profile, but she’s afraid of Awakening him first because he might be able to outsmart her. Lilith looks at another profile—Leah Bede—who seems to be a quiet religious woman. Lilith likes her as a potential ally but also doesn’t want to Awaken her first. Next, Lilith is drawn to the profile of a man named Joseph Li-Chin Shing who is about 40 and seems unremarkable in most ways. Still, Lilith has doubts. She goes on to Celene Ivers, who spent most of her time awake crying about her dead family.
In this chapter, Lilith reviews the data that the Oankali have compiled on various humans. The Oankali profiles, while comprehensive, provide only the type of analytical information that the Oankali themselves value. While Lilith can get some sense of the people she’s examining based on their files, this chapter ultimately highlights how difficult it is to get to know someone based on data about their life alone, with Lilith having to Awaken someone to truly get a sense of what type of person they’ll be.
Themes
Lilith continues working through profile after profile. Curt Loeher was a cop in New York City. Derick Wolski was Australian and interested in nature photography. Gabriel Rinaldi was an actor who confused the Oankali by playing roles. Beatrice Dwyer was a very modest woman who only talked to the Oankali while fully clothed. At last, Lilith arrives at a woman named Tate Marah. She often gets bored at jobs and comes from a wealthy family. She attempted suicide twice but ultimately fought to survive in the wake of the war. Lilith thinks Marah could be helpful but not too dangerous. Lilith creates a room for Tate to inhabit. She goes to Tate’s plant and prepares to Awaken her. Tate is pale and has a childlike face, although she is 27.
The files for the different humans contain a variety of different professions, personalities, and other traits. This shows that the Oankali should be able to see the diversity among humans, and yet their methods on the ship frequently adopt a one-size-fits-all method, particularly when it comes to things like the food in the isolation rooms. On the one hand, Tate’s status as a wealthy White woman makes her superficially very different from Lilith, but Lilith looks on a deeper level to see that Tate is a survivor. It takes a human like Lilith to see that Tate has more in common with Lilith than Paul Titus, who only superficially resembles her.
Themes
